Abstract
Purpose: Tracer injection into ovarian ligaments has been shown to detect sentinel nodes (SNs) in patients with ovarian cancer. To determine the possibility that SNs are missed, this feasibility study compared their detection during surgery with postoperative SPECT/CT. Methods: In eight patients (either ovarian or endometrial cancer), after a staging lymphadenectomy including resection of SNs related to the ovary, SPECT/CT scans were performed within 24 hours. Results: SPECT/CT identified hotspots in four patients at sites where SNs were resected. In six patients additional localizations were found, mainly in the pelvic region. Conclusion: Discrepancies between the γ-probe and SPECT/CT may be due to missed SNs during surgery, but with respect to pelvic hotspots, in the majority of cases they are more probably related to remnants of tracer at injection sites. With respect to sites where SNs were resected, remaining hot spots may have been caused by residual lymphatic flow after resection.
- Copyright © 2016 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Inc.