A tattoo pigmented node and breast cancer

Abstract

Over the last decade, the axillary SLNB has replaced routine ALND for clinical staging in early breast cancer. Studies describe a potential pitfall in the identifi cation of a true sentinel node during surgery due to lymph node pigmentation secondary to migration of tattoo dye. These pigmented "pseudo-sentinel" nodes, if located superficially in the axilla, may mimic the blue sentinel node on visual inspection, therefore missing the true sentinel node and potentially understaging the patient. Here, we present a case report of a breast cancer patient with a tattoo and discuss the importance of tattoo pigment in the LN.