OBJECTIVE: To report our experience in sentinel lymph node biopsy for lymphophilic conjunctival and eyelid tumours. METHODS AND RESULTS: Preliminary study (2005-2007) on 8 patients with conjunctival and or eyelid tumours (melanomas, epidermoid carcinoma, Merkel cell carcinoma). All patients underwent preoperative lymphoscintigraphy 18 FdG pet CT Surgery was performed with complete neck dissection. Sentinel nodes and other nodes harvested were processed separately for histopathologic study; the sentinel were confirmed as histologicaly positive for five patients. Additional positive nodes were found in two out of those five patients. No positive lymph node was found in patients with negative lymphoscintigraphy. After a follow up ranging from 12 to 43 months: two patients died, and 6 are free of disease. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate a very hight level of invaded NO lymph node and confirm the interest of sentinel node technique for optimisation of the therapeutic strategy in lymphophilic conjunctival and eyelid tumours.
OBJECTIVE: To report our experience in sentinel lymph node biopsy for lymphophilic conjunctival and eyelid tumours. METHODS AND RESULTS: Preliminary study (2005-2007) on 8 patients with conjunctival and or eyelid tumours (melanomas, epidermoid carcinoma, Merkel cell carcinoma). All patients underwent preoperative lymphoscintigraphy 18 FdG pet CT Surgery was performed with complete neck dissection. Sentinel nodes and other nodes harvested were processed separately for histopathologic study; the sentinel were confirmed as histologicaly positive for five patients. Additional positive nodes were found in two out of those five patients. No positive lymph node was found in patients with negative lymphoscintigraphy. After a follow up ranging from 12 to 43 months: two patients died, and 6 are free of disease. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate a very hight level of invaded NO lymph node and confirm the interest of sentinel node technique for optimisation of the therapeutic strategy in lymphophilic conjunctival and eyelid tumours.