Cervical cancer and the role of lymph node staging cons sentinel concept.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether the current standard of cervical cancer staging is sentinel lymph node biopsy.


METHODS
Review of the literature focusing on the significance of the sentinel node concept in patients with cervical cancer. Because of the data on the significance of the intraoperative histopathological assessment of sentinel lymph nodes, the role of micrometastasis in lymph nodes, and the standards of procedure, the sentinel procedure were analyzed.


RESULTS
Sentinel lymph node biopsy alone is currently not a routine procedure for cervical cancer staging. This procedure should be performed only by specialized centers in a study setting. More data on its oncological safety are needed.
Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Medical School Hannover, Hannover, Germany. hertel.hermann@mh-hannover.de
Hermann
H
Hertel
D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D021701:Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy / Q000592:standards*; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*