Clinical impact of false-negative sentinel node biopsy in primary XXXX .

@entity1 @entity5 @entity0 @entity4482
BACKGROUND: The aim was to assess the false-negative sentinel node biopsy rate in @entity1 with early @entity0 and its implications in @entity1 treatment. METHODS: Between January 1995 and March 2001, 328 consecutive @entity1 with clinically lymph node-negative primary operable @entity0 underwent lymphatic mapping and sentinel node biopsy using a combination of preoperative @entity4482 . All underwent immediate axillary dissection. The intraoperative success rate in sentinel node identification, false-negative rate, predictive value of negative sentinel node status and overall accuracy were assessed. The clinical features and primary @entity5 characteristics for each false-negative case were reviewed. RESULTS: The sentinel node was identified in 285 (86.9 per cent) of 328 @entity1 . The false-negative rate was 7.9 per cent (eight of 101). Most members of the breast multidisciplinary team would have instituted adjuvant systemic therapy for six false-negative cases based on clinical features and primary @entity5 histology. In all, only two (0.7 per cent) of 285 @entity1 who had sentinel node biopsy may have had their management and survival prospects potentially jeopardized owing to a false-negative sentinel node. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that the clinical impact of a false-negative sentinel node is low.
