Internal mammary sentinel node biopsy for breast cancer

Postoperative Proton Radiotherapy for Localized and Locoregional Breast Cancer: Potential for Clinically Relevant Improvements?

“…The incidence of metastatic internal mammary chain (IMC) node involvement ranges from 10% in axillary node-negative patients to 50% in patients with axillary node invasion (3). Despite this incidence, the need to irradiate this region remains controversial.…”

Routine sampling of internal mammary lymph nodes during microsurgical breast reconstruction—Experience based on 524 microsurgical breast reconstructions

“…Similar results were observed in four of our patients (Cases 1, 3, 6, 7), in whom the numbers of metastatic axillary lymph nodes were pN1 or pN2 without counting the presence of metastatic internal mammary lymph nodes. Because cancer staging is the major guide to provide adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, modifying adjuvant therapy for some of the patients with positive IMLN metastasis was mentioned both in that report and in earlier series . Currently, even patients with early‐stage invasive breast cancer are considered to benefit from chemotherapy unless they have very favorable factors, such as small nodal negative tumors (less than 5 mm) .…”

Feasibility of the internal mammary lymph node flap as a vascularized lymph node transfer: A cadaveric dissection study

“…Multiple reports on endoscopic internal mammary lymph node dissections with and without harvest of adjacent vessels have been published [30][31][32][33][34] ; this may represent a minimally invasive approach to VLNT donor sites. The entire dissection can be completed in 70 min via three trocar sites in the lateral chest wall.…”