Regression in the primary melanoma seems to be a protective factor from metastasis in the SLN. When correctly calculated, the SNB FN rate is 15-20%. Furthermore, the SNB is important to more precisely assess the prognosis of patients with melanoma.

No abstract

The European Union has determined that from 2016 breast cancer patients should be treated in Specialist Breast Units that achieve the minimum standards for the mandatory quality indicators as defined by Eusoma. The existing standard for axillary lymph node staging in breast cancer is sentinel node biopsy (SNB), performed using Technetium-sulphur colloid ( Tc) alone or with blue dye. The major limits of radioisotope consist in the problems linked to radioactivity, in the shortage of tracer and nuclear medicine units. Among existing alternative tracers, SentiMag , which uses superparamagnetic iron oxide particles, can represent a valid option for SNB. We conducted a paired, prospective, multicentre study to evaluate the non-inferiority of SentiMag vs. Tc. The primary end point was the detection rate (DR) per patient. The study sample consists of 193 women affected by breast carcinoma with negative axillary assessment. The concordance rate per patients between Tc and SentiMag was 97.9%. The DR per patient was 99.0% for Tc and 97.9% for SentiMag . SentiMag appears to be non-inferior to the radiotracer and safe. While Tc remains the standard, SentiMag DR appears adequate after a minimum learning curve. In health care settings where nuclear medicine units are not available, SentiMag/Sienna+ allows effective treatment of breast cancer patients.

Prophylactic ILP with melphalan cannot be recommended as an adjunct to standard surgery in high-risk primary limb melanoma.

No abstract