Application progress of sentinel lymph node in gynecologic oncology / 中国医师杂志

ABSTRACT

With the concepts of minimal invasive surgery and precision medicine embedding deeply in modern medicine, traditional clinical treatment strategies are constantly updated due to the rapid progression of medical research. Systematic dissection of the regional lymph nodes is a key component in the surgical therapy of gynecologic malignancies, however it may result in a series of complications, such as lower extremity lymphedema, deep venous thrombosis, immune disorders and so on, which seriously impact the patients' quality of life. The necessity of systematic lymphadenectomy and the extent of lymph nodes resection have always been one of the most controversial issues in gynecologic oncology. In recent years, the extensive application of sentinel lymph node (SLN) technology has been increasingly used in the treatment of gynecologic malignancies, which may provide important guidance on this issue. This article reviews the clinical application status, detection methods, detection efficiency, and current controversies regarding SLN mapping and biopsy in cervical cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer and vulvar cancer, discussing the application value of SLN technology in gynecologic oncology.