title: Clinically relevant information from sentinel lymph node biopsies of melanoma patients.
abstract: Careful laboratory evaluation of sentinel nodes (SNs) is critical to determine the presence of tumor. This requires evaluation of multiple full-face sections from the SN, using H&E staining and immunohistochemistry. In the future, molecular and genetic approaches may be adjunctive to microscopy. Number of tumor-positive SNs and the amount and location of tumor in SNs correlate with tumor spread to non-sentinel nodes, subsequent recurrences and melanoma death, permitting patient assignment to a risk category.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA.
authors.forename: Duan-Ren
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Alistair J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Cochran
authors.forename: Rong-Rong
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Eijun
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Itakura
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Binder
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology*; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D021701:Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*