Dr. Dixon on Advances in Axillary Node Procedures

J. Michael Dixon, MBChB, MD, Professor of Surgery and Consultant Surgeon of the University of Edinburgh; and Clinical Director of the Edinburgh Breast Unit at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland, discusses how a shift in axillary lymph node procedures has positively affected breast cancer patients.

Since the advent of the sentinel node biopsy there has been a dramatic movement away from routinely removing axillary nodes. Focusing primarily on the sentinel nodes as the only axillary node procedure has increased recovery time and reduced the risk of lymphedema for breast cancer patients.

It is becoming even more clear that node dissection is often not necessary after completing a sentinel node biopsy, even if some of the nodes are positive.