Introduction/Background The aim of this study was to verify the feasibility of laparoscopic approach for sentinel lymph node (SLN) surgery in endometrial cancer.

Methodology This retrospective study was carried out using data for 118 patients with endometrial cancer who had undergone SLN mapping. Technetium colloid (Tc^99m) and/or indocyanine green (ICG) was injected into the uterine cervix and a gamma-detecting probe and/or photodynamic eye camera system was used intraoperatively to locate hot spots. SLN detection rate (unilateral or bilateral) and incidence of complications were compared between open approach (O group, n=65) and laparoscopic approach (L group, n=53).

Results Patients‘ median age was 60 years. One hundred and nine (92%) had FIGO Stage I disease. There was no difference in patients‘ age, BMI, FIGO stage, and histology between the two groups. SLN mapping with a combination with two kinds of tracers (Tc^99m and ICG) was performed more frequently in the L group than in the O group (49% vs. 20%, P=0.0008). Successful bilateral or unilateral mapping occurred in 91 patients (77%) and 19 (16%), respectively. There was no difference in SLN detection rate between the two groups (P=0.73). Perioperative complication rate tended to be lower in the L group (6% vs. 19%, P=0.051)

Conclusion Laparoscopic approach might obtain a SLN detection ability equal to open approach without increasing the number of perioperative complication despite limitation of the present study, i.e. a combination with two kinds of tracers might have given the L group an advantage over the O group.

Disclosure Nothing to disclose.