TY - JOUR
T1 - In-transit sentinel nodes must be found: implication from a 10-year follow-up study in melanoma
AU - Chakera, Annette H
AU - Hansen, Lone B
AU - Lock-Andersen, Jørgen
AU - Drzewiecki, Krzysztof T
AU - Hesse, Birger
AU - Lock-Andersen, Jørgen
PY - 2008/10/1
Y1 - 2008/10/1
N2 - The aim was to study the occurrence of in-transit nodes at a preoperative lymphoscintigraphy for patients with primary melanoma, and to reveal their potential role in prognosis. From 1984 to 1996, 911 patients, hospitalized for wide excision of a clinically localized primary cutaneous head-neck or truncal melanoma, had a static lymphoscintigraphy on the day before surgery as part of a prospective protocol. Lymph nodes were in no case removed at the time of scintigraphy. Recurrence and survival patterns were compared for patients with in-transit nodes with the remaining patients with only regional nodes. Follow-up time was a minimum of 10 years. In-transit nodes were visualized by lymphoscintigraphy in 6% of the patients, 18% of whom had a later recurrence in this region. The melanomas in the in-transit node group were slightly thicker, and ulceration was slightly more frequent (neither significant). The in-transit node group had significantly more lymph node basins visualized at scintigraphy compared with the remaining group of patients with only regional nodes. The risk of recurrence and/or death from melanoma was significantly worse (P
AB - The aim was to study the occurrence of in-transit nodes at a preoperative lymphoscintigraphy for patients with primary melanoma, and to reveal their potential role in prognosis. From 1984 to 1996, 911 patients, hospitalized for wide excision of a clinically localized primary cutaneous head-neck or truncal melanoma, had a static lymphoscintigraphy on the day before surgery as part of a prospective protocol. Lymph nodes were in no case removed at the time of scintigraphy. Recurrence and survival patterns were compared for patients with in-transit nodes with the remaining patients with only regional nodes. Follow-up time was a minimum of 10 years. In-transit nodes were visualized by lymphoscintigraphy in 6% of the patients, 18% of whom had a later recurrence in this region. The melanomas in the in-transit node group were slightly thicker, and ulceration was slightly more frequent (neither significant). The in-transit node group had significantly more lymph node basins visualized at scintigraphy compared with the remaining group of patients with only regional nodes. The risk of recurrence and/or death from melanoma was significantly worse (P
U2 - 10.1097/CMR.0b013e328308da77
DO - 10.1097/CMR.0b013e328308da77
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 18781135
SN - 0960-8931
VL - 18
SP - 359
EP - 364
JO - Melanoma Research
JF - Melanoma Research
IS - 5
ER -