What is sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB)?

A SLNB is a procedure in which the first draining lymph node is identified, removed, and examined to determine whether cancer cells are present.
In this procedure, a radioactive and/or blue dye is injected subdermal/peritumor area that travels along the lymphatics and drain tumor.

These nodes are then sent for pathology examination by a technique called frozen section. The results are usually available within 30 minutes. If they are found to contain tumour cells then the rest of the axillary nodes may be removed. If sentinel lymph nodes do not have cancers cells, then no further removal of axillary lymph nodes is required.


For further guidance, consult Dr Rajinder Kaur Saggu, one of the top Breast surgeon in Delhi.