[Impact of the availability of an external nuclear medicine service in the application of sentinel lymph node biopsy in breast cancer surgery].

Introduction: To perform sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB), nuclear medicine services that have previously undergone a validation phase are required. The aim of the present study was to analyze the possibility of performing this technique with a previously validated, external nuclear medicine service and to study its impact on the indication for radical axillary lymphadenectomy (RAL) and on length of postoperative hospital stay.

Patients And Methods: We performed a prospective study in a cohort of patients with breast cancer starting from the introduction of SLNB in our center, which was made possible by collaboration with an external nuclear medicine service that performed lymphoscintigraphy and sentinel node detection.