Is there a requirement for axillary lymph node dissection following identification of micro-metastasis or isolated tumour cells at sentinel node biopsy for breast cancer?

摘要

Introduction: Recent decades have seen a significant shift towards conservative management of the axilla. Increasingly, immunohistochemical analysis of sentinel nodes leads to the detection of small tumour deposits, the significance of which remains uncertain. The aims of this study are to examine patients whose sentinel lymph nodes are positive for macro-metastasis, micro-metastasis or isolated tumour cells (ITCs) and to determine the rate of further nodal disease after axillary lymph node dissection (ALND).