Is preoperative imaging of sentinel lymph node in breast cancer necessary? A retrospective case control study

Subdermal injection of radiolabeled nanocolloids between tumor and axilla allowed high intraoperative detection of SLN. Preoperative SLN imaging had no significant impact on the intraoperative detection but is a time-consuming and resource-intensive procedure. Prospective studies might provide further evidence to omit preoperative SLN imaging in patients with T1-2 invasive breast cancer and clinically negative axilla.