PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Jean-Marc Classe
AU  - Maryse Fiche
AU  - Caroline Rousseau
AU  - Christine Sagan
AU  - François Dravet
AU  - Raphaëlle Pioud
AU  - Albert Lisbona
AU  - Ludovic Ferrer
AU  - Loic Campion
AU  - Isabelle Resche
AU  - Chantal Curtet
TI  - Prospective Comparison of 3 γ-Probes for Sentinel Lymph Node Detection in 200 Breast Cancer Patients
DP  - 2005 Mar 01
TA  - Journal of Nuclear Medicine
PG  - 395--399
VI  - 46
IP  - 3
4099  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/46/3/395.short
4100  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/46/3/395.full
SO  - J Nucl Med2005 Mar 01; 46
AB  - Previous reports have shown that axillary sentinel lymph node (ASLN) radiodetection allows accurate axillary staging for patients with early breast cancer. Radioguided surgery implies the use of a γ-probe to count the emitted radioactivity of marked ASLNs. Several γ-probes are commercially available, each with its own properties. The clinical impact of the type of γ-probe used for ASLN radiodetection remains to be evaluated. Methods: Three commercially available γ-probes were evaluated: a scintillator with a bismuth germanate crystal (probe A), a semiconductor with a cadmium telluride crystal (probe B), and a semiconductor with a cadmium zinc telluride crystal (probe C). Two hundred patients with early breast cancer were prospectively enrolled to undergo ASLN radiodetection and axillary lymphadenectomy. ASLN mapping consisted of injecting 99mTc-sulfur-colloid around the tumor. For each patient, sentinel lymph nodes were counted successively with the 3 probes and the sensitivity of each γ-probe was determined from ASLN residual activity. The results of detection rates and false-negative rates for each probe were compared. Results: Mean residual ASLN activity was 52 kBq (range, 0.07–189 kBq). Sensitivity was compared among the 3 probes and found to be best for probe A. The detection rate of probe A was significantly better than that of probe B (93% vs. 86%, P = 0.05) but not different from that of probe C (93% vs. 90%). No differences in false-negative rates were observed among the 3 probes. Conclusion: ASLN detection rate depends on the type of γ-probe used. Because failure to detect the ASLN leads to complete axillary lymphadenectomy, involving local morbidity and other sequelae, the type of γ-probe must be considered important for sentinel lymph node radiodetection.