Accuracy of detection rate and intraoperative sentinel lymph node assessment in early-stage cervical carcinoma

Objective: This article shows our experience on sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy in early-stage cervical carcinoma since the technique was introduced in our Institution. The main objective is to analyze the detection rate (DR) of metastatic SLNs, identifying prognostic factors for an increased risk of nodal metastases. Our second aim was to compare the accuracy of nodal metastases DR between intraoperative analysis and postoperative ultrastaging. Materials and Methods: Forty-one women with the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stages IA2-IIA1 who underwent laparoscopic surgical treatment applying the SLN technique, from December 2011 to June 2016, at La Paz University Hospital, were included. The sentinel node was identified using technetium and methylene blue dye or indocyanine green near-infrared fluorescent imaging, analyzed intraoperatively, and compared to deferred ultrastaging. Results: SLN DR was 100%, with a bilaterality rate of 83%. Twelve (26.8%) patients had metastatic nodes, 11 of them (91.7%) detected by SLN technique, of which 9 (81.8%) had only the sentinel node affected. False-negative rate was 2.4% after ultrastaging procedure. Metastatic SLN detection with ultrastaging was 45.5% higher than the intraoperative analysis, 63.6% of which had low tumor burden. The global detection of patients with nodal metastases after SLN technique was 21.9% higher than pelvic lymphadenectomy. Conclusions: Our preliminary results corroborate that SLN biopsy selectively maps metastatic nodes and ultrastaging increases the detection of metastatic SLNs, predominantly due to low tumor burden