Dual-Modality Photoacoustic and Ultrasound Imaging System for Noninvasive Sentinel Lymph Node Detection in Patients with Breast Cancer

作者：Garcia Uribe Alejandro; Erpelding Todd N; Krumholz Arie; Ke Haixin; Maslov Konstantin; Appleton Catherine; Margenthaler Julie A; Wang Lihong V^*

来源：Scientific Reports, 2015, 5(1): 15748.

DOI：10.1038/srep15748

The detection of regional lymph node metastases is important in cancer staging as it guides the prognosis of the patient and the strategy for treatment. Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is an accurate, less invasive alternative to axillary lymph node dissection. The sentinel lymph node hypothesis states that the pathological status of the axilla can be accurately predicted by determining the status of the first lymph nodes that drain from the primary tumor. Physicians use radio-labeled sulfur colloid and/or methylene blue dye to identify the SLN, which is most likely to contain metastatic cancer cells. However, the surgical procedure causes morbidity and associated expenses. To overcome these limitations, we developed a dual-modality photoacoustic and ultrasonic imaging system to noninvasively detect SLNs based on the accumulation of methylene blue dye. Ultimately, we aim to guide percutaneous needle biopsies and provide a minimally invasive method for axillary staging of breast cancer.

• 出版日期2015-10-29