Annals of surgery
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Prospective randomized study comparing sentinel lymph node evaluation with standard pathologic evaluation for the staging of colon carcinoma: results from the United States Military Cancer Institute Clinical Trials Group Study GI-01.
The principal role of sentinel lymph node (SLN) sampling and ultrastaging in colon cancer is enhanced staging accuracy. The utility of this technique for patients with colon cancer remains controversial. ⋯ SLN mapping, step sectioning, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) identifies small volume nodal disease and improves staging in patients with resectable colon cancer. A prospective trial is ongoing to determine the clinical significance of colon cancer micrometastasis in sentinel lymph nodes.