Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 10, 2026
Multispectral Real-time Fluorescence Imaging for Intraoperative Detection of the Sentinel Lymph Node in Gynecologic Oncology
Published on: October 20, 2010
Optimization of sentinel lymph node biopsy in breast cancer using an operative gamma camera
Carole Mathelin1, Samuel Salvador, Sabrina Croce
1Service de Gynécologie-Obstétrique, Hôpital Civil, 1 place de l'Hôpital, F-67091 Strasbourg Cedex, France. carole.mathelin@chru-strasbourg.fr.
Background:
Sentinel lymph node (SLN) procedure is now a widely accepted method of LN staging in selected invasive breast cancers (unifocal, size
Case Presentation:
A 44-year-old female patient with a 14-mm infiltrative ductal carcinoma underwent the SLN procedure. An operative gamma camera was used during and after the surgery. The conventional lymphoscintigraphy showed only one SLN, which was also detected by the operative gamma camera, then removed and measured (9.6 kBq). It was analyzed by frozen sections, showing no cancer cells. During this analysis, the exploration of the axillary area with the operative gamma camera enabled the identification of a second SLN with low activity (0.5 kBq) that conventional lymphoscintigraphy, surgical probe and blue staining had failed to visualize. Histological examination revealed a macrometastasis. Axillary clearance was then performed, followed by a postoperative image proving that no SLN remained. Therefore, the use of the operative gamma camera prevented an under-estimation of staging which would have resulted in a suboptimal treatment for this patient.
Conclusion:
This case report illustrates that an efficient operative gamma camera may be able to decrease the risk of false negative rate of the SLN procedure, and could be an additional tool to control the quality of the surgery.
Trial Registration:
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00357487.
