Research summary: Sentinel lymph node biopsy role in melanoma therapy

This month we dip our toes into the challenging waters of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). This is always a contentious topic, with debate focussed around its utility in diagnosis and staging, and its role in therapy both as a part of node excision but also access to immunotherapy. 

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The landscape is changing fairly rapidly, especially as the role of immunotherapy and other novel treatments further evolve and are being used more in early stage melanoma.

This paper, published in DPC recently, explores this topic in a very practical and pragmatic way and makes for very useful reading.

Of course we need to follow our local health service guidance around referral for SLNB, but this can usefully be informed by papers such as this when we have our own conversations with patients.

Read the full paper here.

– Prof David Wilkinson

For further information on this topic, you may be interested in the HealthCert Professional Diploma in Skin Cancer Medicine.

Read another research summary from Prof David Wilkinson: Photodynamic therapy to treat field cancerisation

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