Successful sentinel node identification in colon carcinoma using Patent Blue V

Aim. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of Patent Blue V for identification of the sentinel node in patients with colon carcinoma. Method. From May 2002, 35 patients operated for colon carcinoma underwent lymphatic mapping using Patent Blue V as marker. Either directly after resection of the colon or during operation 2 ml of Patent Blue V was injected peritumourally, and the first 1 to 4 blue nodes were marked as sentinel. nodes. Pathological evaluation was done on a single HE-stained section of all. lymph nodes. Only if all sentinel nodes were negative for metastases, serial sectioning and additional immunohistochemical. staining against keratine CK 7/8 was performed to reveal micrometastasis in the sentinel, nodes. Results. In 33/35 of patients at least one sentinel. node was identified. In 10/33 the sentinel node was positive for metastases, and in 5/10 this was the only node containing metastases. One patient had a false negative sentinel node (accuracy 97%, sensitivity 91%). Conclusion. Using Patent Blue V, it is possible to identify the sentinel node in most patients with colon cancer. The results are comparable with other sentinel node studies using Lymphazurin. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.