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If only the 86 patients with invasive carcinoma and four or more axillary nodes removed at surgery are considered, the sentinel node was accurate in assessing the axillary status in 97.7% of the total patient group (2.3% false negative rate), 97.2% of those in whom sentinel nodes were successfully retrieved (2.8% false negative rate) and 94.9% of the patients with positive axillary nodes (5.1% false negative rate). Sentinel node biopsy is a valid technique providing an accurate reflection of the axillary node status and having a low false negative rate.