<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Breast cancer is the most common malignancy and the leading cause of death due to cancer in European women. Mammography screening programs aimed to increase the detection of early cancer stages were implemented in numerous European countries. Recent data show a decrease in mortality due to breast cancer in many countries, particularly among young women. At the same time, the number of sentinel node biopsy procedures and breast-conserving surgeries has increased. Intraoperative sentinel lymph node biopsy preceded by lymphoscintigraphy is used in breast cancer patients with no clinical signs of lymph node metastasis. Due to the limited sensitivity and specificity of physical examination in detecting metastatic lesions, developing an appropriate diagnostic algorithm for the preoperative assessment of axillary lymph nodes seems to be a challenge. The importance of ultrasound in patient qualification for sentinel lymph-node biopsy has been discussed in a number of works. Furthermore, different lymphoscintigraphy protocols have been compared in the literature. The usefulness of novel radiopharmaceuticals as well as the methods of image acquisition in sentinel lymph node diagnostics have also been assessed. The aim of this article is to present, basing on current guidelines, literature data as well as our own experience, the diagnostic possibilities of axillary lymph node ultrasound in patient qualification for an appropriate treatment as well as the role of lymphoscintigraphy in sentinel lymph node biopsy.</p></abstract>

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy and the leading cause of death due to cancer in European women. Mammography screening programs aimed to increase the detection of early cancer stages were implemented in numerous European countries. Recent data show a decrease in mortality due to breast cancer in many countries, particularly among young women. At the same time, the number of sentinel node biopsy procedures and breast-conserving surgeries has increased. Intraoperative sentinel lymph node biopsy preceded by lymphoscintigraphy is used in breast cancer patients with no clinical signs of lymph node metastasis. Due to the limited sensitivity and specificity of physical examination in detecting metastatic lesions, developing an appropriate diagnostic algorithm for the preoperative assessment of axillary lymph nodes seems to be a challenge. The importance of ultrasound in patient qualification for sentinel lymph-node biopsy has been discussed in a number of works. Furthermore, different lymphoscintigraphy protocols have been compared in the literature. The usefulness of novel radiopharmaceuticals as well as the methods of image acquisition in sentinel lymph node diagnostics have also been assessed. The aim of this article is to present, basing on current guidelines, literature data as well as our own experience, the diagnostic possibilities of axillary lymph node ultrasound in patient qualification for an appropriate treatment as well as the role of lymphoscintigraphy in sentinel lymph node biopsy.

The role of ultrasound and lymphoscintigraphy in the assessment of axillary lymph nodes in patients with breast cancer

Journal of Ultrasonography

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Public License.

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy and the leading cause of death due to cancer in European women. Mammography screening programs aimed to increase...

The role of ultrasound and lymphoscintigraphy in the assessment of axillary lymph nodes in patients with breast cancer

Published Online: Mar 29, 2016

Page range: 5 - 15

Received: Jan 20, 2016

Accepted: Feb 15, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15557/jou.2016.0001

Keywords
breast cancer, sentinel lymph node, axillary lymph nodes, lymphoscintigraphy, ultrasound, rak piersi, węzeł wartowniczy, węzły chłonne pachowe, limfoscyntygrafia, ultrasonografia

© 2016 Michał Nieciecki et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Public License.

The role of ultrasound and lymphoscintigraphy in the assessment of axillary lymph nodes in patients with breast cancer

Published Online: Mar 29, 2016

Page range: 5 - 15

Received: Jan 20, 2016

Accepted: Feb 15, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15557/jou.2016.0001

Keywordsbreast cancer, sentinel lymph node, axillary lymph nodes, lymphoscintigraphy, ultrasound, rak piersi, węzeł wartowniczy, węzły chłonne pachowe, limfoscyntygrafia, ultrasonografia

© 2016 Michał Nieciecki et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Public License.

Keywords
breast cancer, sentinel lymph node, axillary lymph nodes, lymphoscintigraphy, ultrasound, rak piersi, węzeł wartowniczy, węzły chłonne pachowe, limfoscyntygrafia, ultrasonografia