Abstract
Since the concept of sentinel node biopsy (SNB) was introduced into the treatment of cutaneous malignant melanoma, many reports have come to be seen about the usefulness in Europe and America. In Japan, surgeons in many institutions started performing dye-guided SNB on patients with cutaneous malignant melanoma around 1997, and we also initiated the procedure primarily on patients with inguinal lymph nodes as a regional lymph node. From April 2002 onward, we performed preoperative lymphoscintigraphy and intraoperative gamma probe detection in combination with a dye method, which demonstrated a high sentinel node identification rate of 95%. The identification rates of individual regional lymph nodes were 97% for inguinal lymph nodes, 96% for axillary lymph nodes, and 89% for cervical lymph nodes, which were significantly higher than those achieved by the dye method alone. The combination of dye and RI is essential for accurate identification of sentinel nodes, and many institutions should preferably establish the standards for sentinel node navigation surgery with the use of dye and RI.
