Clinically relevant information from sentinel lymph node biopsies of melanoma patients

Careful laboratory evaluation of sentinel nodes (SNs) is critical to determine the presence of tumor. This requires evaluation of multiple full-face sections from the SN, using H&E staining and immunohistochemistry. In the future, molecular and genetic approaches may be adjunctive to microscopy. Number of tumor-positive SNs and the amount and location of tumor in SNs correlate with tumor spread to non-sentinel nodes, subsequent recurrences and melanoma death, permitting patient assignment to a risk category.