Lymph node mapping and identification of sentinel nodes in oral and oropharyngeal cancer

INTRODUCTION: Sentinel node biopsy (SNB) is a new technique in the management of cancers. The technique, which has been studied most in melanoma and breast cancer, involves the identification of the first lymph node draining a tumour and the examination of that node for the presence of nodal metastases. If the sentinel lymph node (SLN) does not contain tumour, the implication is that the whole regional lymph node basin is free from tumour and a formal lymph node dissection can be avoided. Prior to the start of this study, few studies had been performed on patients with head and neck cancer and those that were published were either in very low numbers or had failed in their aims. This study was performed to determine whether the SLN could be identified in patients with head and neck cancer and to determine if the SLN was an accurate reflector of the pathological status of the neck. If these aims were met, the technique could be applied as a staging procedure, and avoid an elective neck dissection