The use of touch preparation for the evaluation of sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer

Abstract

Background: This study was undertaken to evaluate the accuracy of touch preparation (touch prep) in the evaluation of sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs).

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of 402 breast cancer patients who underwent SLN biopsy.

Results: A SLN was identified in 381 patients. Of 61 patients with a true positive result, 59 underwent axillary node dissection, and in 22 the SLN was the only node with metastases. Thirty-six (9.44%) had at least 1 false negative result. Twenty-five with a false negative results were due to macrometastases, with 17 (2.4%) false negatives occurring in patients with invasive ductal and 6 (5.5%) in those with invasive lobular histology, P = .04. Touch prep had an overall sensitivity of 62.89% and specificity of 98.94%.

Conclusions: Touch prep for the evaluation of SLNs in breast cancer compares favorably to reported results for frozen section. False negative findings are more likely with micrometastases and invasive lobular histology.