Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31258292›Full record

ArticleTzu chi medical journal

Optimal imaging time for Tc-99m phytate lymphoscintigraphy for sentinel lymph node mapping in patients with breast cancer.

Ching-Chun Ho, Yu-Hung Chen, Shu-Hsin Liu, Hwa-Tsung Chen, Ming-Che Lee

Open access · diamondAbstract read
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Article in Tzu chi medical journal. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
0.1field-weighted citation impact, top 58% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Ching-Chun HoDepartment of Surgery, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Yu-Hung ChenDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Shu-Hsin LiuDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Hwa-Tsung ChenDepartment of Surgery, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Ming-Che LeeDepartment of Surgery, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital · TW

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesSentinel lymph node (SLN) sampling has become a standard practice in managing early-stage breast cancer. Lymphoscintigraphy is one of the major methods used. The radioactive tracer used in Taiwan is Tc-99m phytate. However, this agent is not commonly used around the world and the optimal imaging time has not been studied. Thus, we investigated the optimal imaging time of Tc-99m phytate lymphoscintigraphy for SLN mapping in patients with breast cancer. MATERIALS AND

methodsWe retrospectively reviewed SLN Tc-99m phytate lymphoscintigraphies in 135 patients with breast cancer between August 2013 and November 2017. The time for the first SLN to be visualized after radiotracer injection was recorded to determine the optimal imaging time. If no SLN was identified on imaging, the scan was continued to 60 min. We also recorded the presurgical technical and clinical factors to analyze the risk factors for nonvisualization of SLN. Each patient's postoperative axillary lymph node status was also recorded.

resultsAxillary SLNs were identified on imaging in 94.8% of the patients. All first SLNs presented within 30 min. In 6 of 7 patients with negative imaging, SLNs were identified during surgery using either blue dye or a hand-held gamma probe. Nonvisualization of SLNs on lymphoscintigraphy was significantly associated with a lower injection dose (1.0 mCi vs. 2.0 mCi), 4-injection protocol (compared to 2-injection), and injection around an outer upper quadrant tumor. In addition, patients with axillary lymph node metastasis had a higher percentage of SLN image mapping failure, with a marginally significant difference.

conclusionBased on our study, 30 min after Tc-99m phytate injection is the optimal time for lymphoscintigraphy and delayed imaging beyond 30 min is not necessary. In addition, a lower injection dose, the 4-injection method, and an injection near the outer upper quadrant tumor should be avoided to minimize nonvisualization of SLNs.

Indexed as

Breast cancerLymphoscintigraphyPhytateSentinel lymph node

Identifiers

PMID31258292
PMCPMC6559026
OpenAlexW2806188625

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.