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Article: Distance of Lymph Nodes From the Tumor: An Important Feature in Colorectal Cancer Specimens.
- Article from:
- Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
- Article date:
- February 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 College of American Pathologists. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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An Important Feature in Colorectal Cancer Specimens
The nodal status is a major prognostic factor in colorectal carcinoma and is a part of all major staging systems.[1-3] The number of lymph nodes required for an adequate staging, however, has long been a matter of controversy; some series suggest that a minimum of 6 to 17 nodes should be investigated for a reliable node-negative staging (Table 1).[4-9] Although the number of nodes is important for staging, some of their qualitative features may also be useful for staging. We previously attempted lymphatic mapping with the peritumoral injection of patent blue dye to identify the lymph nodes draining the tumors. We ...