Sentinel lymph node scintigraphy in breast cancer. Own experience

Background. The technique for examining sentinel lymph nodes makes it possible to objectively visualize the direction of lymph drainage from the area of the tumor, to perform targeted biopsy of the lymph node and study it morphologically. Objective. Assessment of the effectiveness of lymphoscintigraphy in identifying sentinel lymph nodes depending on the methods of radiopharmaceutical (RPh) administration. Methods. 139 scintigraphic examinations of sentinel lymph nodes with Tekhnefit-99mTc were performed in women with breast cancer (T1-2N0M0). Depending on the route of administration of the RPh, the patients were divided into three groups: paratumoral; paraareo-lar; intradermal injection into the quadrant of the corresponding neoplasm and paratumoral. Results. According to our data, sentinel lymph nodes were best detected 60 minutes after the introduction of RPh with intradermal injection into the quadrant of the corresponding neoplasm and paratumoral (97%), para-areolar injection (92.5%). In most cases, intraoperatively, lymph nodes detected by scintigraphy were detected (89.3%). Discussion. According to our results, the optimal time for detecting «sentinel» lymph nodes using «Technefit-99mTc» is 60 minutes. Negative results on scintigraphy and intraoperative data are possibly associated with the size of the RPh particles used in this technique. Conclusion. The rate of detection of sentinel lymph nodes ranged from 87 to 92.6%, which is comparable with the literature data.

scintigraphy, sentinel lymph node, breast cancer