Lymphoscintigraphy for Sentinel Node Mapping Using a Hybrid SPECT/CT System

Lymphoscintigraphy is performed before sentinel node (SN) biopsy for SN mapping. It is of clinical importance mainly if the tumor is located in body parts with ambiguous lymph node drainage. The purpose of this study was to assess the clinical benefit of fused SPECT/CT images to planar images for SN mapping. Methods: Thirty-four consecutive patients with cuta-neous malignant melanoma (n 28) and squamous cell carci-noma (n 6) and scheduled for SN biopsy were enrolled. Primary tumors were located in the trunk (n 12), in the ex-tremities (n 12), in the head and neck (n 9), and in the penis (n 1). Scintigraphy was performed using a hybrid gamma-camera/low-dose CT system. Planar images and fused SPECT/CT images were interpreted separately. Results: SPECT/CT identified multiple draining basins in 6 of 12 patients (50%) with trunk melanoma and in 3 of 9 patients (33%) wit