Table 3.
Characteristics of the SLN, comparing patients with primary tumors in EXL (external quadrants and axillary tail), INL (internal quadrants), and NAL (nipple and areola) locations.
| Characteristics of the SLN | EXL | INL | NAL | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N = 160 | N = 58 | N = 17 | ||
| Technique for SLN detection (%) | 0.905¥ | |||
| Superparamagnetic iron oxide | 45.6% (n = 73) | 43.1% (n = 25) | 41.2% (n = 7) | |
| Patent blue + radioisotope | 54.4% (n = 87) | 56.9% (n = 33) | 58.8% (n = 10) | |
|
| ||||
| SLN status (%) | 0.937¥ | |||
| Negative | 83.1% (n = 133) | 81.0% (n = 47) | 82.4% (n = 14) | |
| Positive | 16.9% (n = 27) | 19.1% (n = 11) | 17.6% (n = 3) | |
|
| ||||
| Number of metastatic SLN | 0.542Ω | |||
| 1 metastatic SLN (%) | 14.4% (n = 23) | 17.2% (n = 9) | 17.6% (n = 3) | |
| 2 metastatic SLN (%) | 2.5% (n = 4) | 3.4% (n = 2) | 0.0% (n = 0) | |
| Mean ± SD | 0.2 ± 0.5 | 0.2 ± 0.5 | 0.35 ± 0.8 | |
|
| ||||
| OSNA result (%) | 0.937¥ | |||
| Negative (pN0) | 83.1% (n = 133) | 81.0% (n = 47) | 82.4% (n = 14) | |
| Micrometastases (pN1mi) | 6.9% (n = 11) | 17.1% (n = 10) | 17.6% (n = 3) | |
| Macrometastases (pN1) | 10.0% (n = 16) | 2.0% (n = 1) | 0.0% (n = 0) | |
|
| ||||
| TTL | 0.570Ω | |||
| Minimum | 170 | 280 | 360 | |
| Maximum | 430,000 | 420,000 | 470 | |
| Mean ± SD | 86,314 ± 140,522 | 96,536 ± 156,371 | 397 ± 64 | |
Note: ¥: chi-square test, Ω: one-way ANOVA.
Abbreviations: SD, standard deviation; SLN, sentinel lymph node.