Prior to Procedure

The care team may meet with you to talk about:

• Anesthesia options
• Any allergies you may have
• Fasting before the biopsy, such as avoiding food or drink after midnight the night before
• Current medicines, herbs, and supplements that you take and whether you need to stop taking them before the biopsy
• Whether you need a ride to and from the biopsy
• Tests that will need to be done before the biopsy

Anesthesia

Depending on where the lymph node is, the doctor may give:

• General anesthesia —you will be asleep.
• Local anesthesia—the area will be numb.
• Regional anesthesia—an area of the body will be numb.

Description of the Procedure

A blue dye, and often a radioactive tracer, will be injected into an area near the tumor. It may be done a few hours before the biopsy. The dye and tracer will travel from the tumor area to the sentinel nodes. This will also help show which nodes are the sentinel lymph nodes.

A small incision will be made. The sentinel node(s) will be removed. The removed node (s) will be checked for cancer cells. If cancer is found, the rest of the lymph nodes in that area will be removed.

If cancer is not seen in the sentinel node, it is unlikely that the cancer has spread to other lymph nodes. The other lymph nodes will not be removed.

How Long Will It Take?

The biopsy takes about 30 to 60 minutes. Surgery to remove the entire cancer takes longer.

Will It Hurt?

There may be some mild pain and discomfort after the biopsy. Medicines can help.

Post-procedure Care

After the biopsy, there may be a short stay at the care center. Many can go home the same day.

The lymph node will be sent to the lab for testing. The biopsy results will determine if more lymph nodes need to be removed. It can also help determine how severe the cancer is.