OBJECTIVE

Carbon nanoparticle (CNP)-guided sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) has been extensively adopted as a cost-effective and highly efficient method for tracing malignant tumors except for those associated with vulvar cancer. The current study aimed to validate the feasibility and efficacy of CNPs in tracking sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) in patients with early vulvar cancer.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed patients with vulvar cancer at our institution from January 2016 to April 2022 who were pathologically diagnosed and underwent SLNB or inguinofemoral lymphadenectomy (IFLND). CNPs were the only lymphatic tracer used in SLNB. Patient demographics, perioperative outcomes and follow-up results, including overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS), were compared between the SLNB and IFLND groups.

RESULTS

Data from 52 patients were collected and investigated. Forty groins of 22 patients who underwent SLNB with CNP tracing were included. Black-stained SLNs were detected in 32 groins of 19 patients, and the rates of CNP detection by patient and by groin were 86.4 % and 80 %, respectively. Patients who underwent SLNB had better perioperative outcomes than those who underwent IFLND in certain aspects (groin drainage rate: 41.2 % and 80 %, respectively, p < 0.05; daily drainage volume (ml): 12.49 and 36.4, respectively, p < 0.05; and inguinal wound healing rate: 100 % and 80 %, respectively, p < 0.05). The results of survival analysis indicated similar prognoses for node-negative patients who underwent CNP-guided SLNB or IFLND.

CONCLUSIONS

Sentinel lymph node mapping with CNPs in vulvar cancer is feasible and demonstrates considerable biosecurity. With a satisfactory SLN detection rate achieved expediently, CNPs are a promising lymphatic tracer worthy of further utilization in vulvar cancer and could be an alternative option to canonical tracers.