Lymph nodes are small collections of tissue all over the body that drain bodily fluid. These axillary lymph nodes are important in evaluating breast cancer since, if they are positive, it suggests that the cancer cells have spread outside of the breast. The current standard of care is for most breast cancer patients undergoing surgery to have a sentinel lymph node biopsy which is a procedure to take a sample of the lymph nodes in the armpit (also called the axilla) during their breast surgery. However this intraoperative biopsy comes with certain risks such as arm swelling or lymphedema, arm pain, arm numbness/tingling, and/or psychological distress from waiting for the results or the possibility of further interventions. In order to avoid this and have a result before surgery, this study will explore a nonsurgical method of sampling these lymph nodes. Normally suspicious lymph nodes are hard to find accurately by exam and ultrasound.
A new method has been developed that involves injecting a small amount of iron dissolved in liquid into the breast that gets absorbed by the lymph nodes making them bright on ultrasound and possible to biopsy. This method has been shown to have results as accurate as standard sentinel lymph node biopsy by comparing them in the operating room. This study will now investigate performing these ultrasounds and biopsies in the office as well as compare these results to the results of the standard sentinel lymph node biopsy in the operating room. The results of this study could help future breast cancer patients to avoid invasive sampling and all of the accompanying risk as well as give patients and the care team an idea of the extent of disease sooner in order to guide management.
