Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 21, 2026
07:51
The Application of 1% Methylene Blue Dye As a Single Technique in Breast Cancer Sentinel Node Biopsy
Published on: June 1, 2019
21.2K
Modified methylene blue injection improves lymph node harvest in rectal cancer
Jianpei Liu1, Pinjie Huang2, Zongheng Zheng1
1Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
ANZ Journal of Surgery
|October 22, 2014
Summary
Methylene blue injection significantly improves lymph node harvest in rectal cancer, enhancing staging accuracy by identifying more small and metastatic nodes. However, this method did not impact overall patient survival.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Surgical Pathology
- Gastrointestinal Surgery
Background:
- Accurate staging of rectal cancer is crucial for prognosis.
- Adequate lymph node harvest is essential for precise staging.
- Nodal metastases significantly influence rectal cancer outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility of a modified lymph node harvest technique in rectal cancer.
- To determine if methylene blue injection improves lymph node yield.
- To assess the impact of enhanced lymph node harvest on patient survival.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study involving 131 rectal cancer patients.
- Randomized assignment to control (palpation/sight) or methylene blue injection groups.
- Analysis of clinicopathologic data and long-term follow-up.
Main Results:
- Methylene blue group yielded significantly more lymph nodes (23.2 vs 11.7).
- Enhanced harvest included more small (<5 mm) and metastatic lymph nodes.
- Four patients shifted to a node-positive stage due to additional findings.
- No significant difference in overall survival between groups.
Conclusions:
- Methylene blue injection is an effective method to improve lymph node harvest in rectal cancer.
- Enhanced lymph node retrieval leads to more accurate staging.
- The technique did not demonstrate a survival benefit in this study.
