What is a sentinal node biopsy?
A. This procedure is used to locate the first lymph node in the drainage of the breast that would be the most likely to contain cancer cells if they have traveled out of the breast into the lymphatic system. A blue dye and/or a radioactive isotope injected into the breast travels in the lymphatic vessels to identify which node or nodes to remove for pathologic evaluation. If the sentinal nodes are negative for malignancy, no further lymph nodes are removed.
