Erschienen in:
01.01.2005 | Editorial
Reducing the Need for Sentinel Node Procedures by Ultrasound Examination of Regional Lymph Nodes
verfasst von:
Alexander M. M. Eggermont, MD, PhD
Erschienen in:
Annals of Surgical Oncology
|
Ausgabe 1/2005
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Excerpt
In this issue of
Annals of Surgical Oncology, Starritt et al.
1 present their experience with ultrasound (US) examination of sentinel nodes (SNs) in the initial assessment of patients with primary cutaneous melanoma. In 304 patients, histopathology of the SN revealed metastatic disease in 33 node fields in 31 patients. Only 7 of 33 node fields had been also identified by US. Metastatic deposits <4.5 mm had not been identified by US. The authors concluded that because most metastatic deposits in SNs are smaller, US is not cost-effective in this setting. The authors suggest, on the basis not of their own findings, but of the results of a study by Garbe et al.
2 (which demonstrated that the ability of US to detect melanoma recurrence in lymph nodes during follow-up was greatest in stage IIb patients), that in this subset of patients with more aggressive melanomas, US of the SN in the primary assessment is likely to be positive more often and should therefore be considered. This is mixed message indicating that this chapter is not closed. …
