ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The aim of study was to determine the level of the radiation exposure of surgical staff during surgical probe applications in breast cancer. METHODS: Three operations of a sentinel lymph node biopsy were randomly selected. Spaced circles (50 cm apart) were drawn surrounding the operation bed on the floor. Tc-99m nanocolloid was injected peritumorally and intradermally into a patient. The radiation dose was measured with a GeigerMueller counter placed according to the drawn circles at distances of 50-200 cm from the side of patient's head and bilateral chest while the patient lay on the operation bed. All of the surgical procedures were recorded with a video camera and were monitored. RESULTS: The whole body dose to the senior surgeon was calculated as 2.00-4.70 microSv which means that a senior surgeon can perform 212-500 procedures per year to reach the annual International Commission on Radiological Protection radiation dose limit for a member of the public. CONCLUSION: We concluded that radiation risk to the surgical staff is low from sentinel node detection with the use of radiocolloids.