Surgical Treatment of Lymph–Node Metastases

INTEREST in the problem of management of regional lymph-node metastases has greatly increased during the past ten years. Critical analysis of treatment of cancer has emphasized that failures are often attributable to regional recurrence rather than to widespread generalization of the disease and that a more radical eradication of the regional lymph-node drainage areas might have prevented recurrence.Basically, the problem of cancer treatment may be resolved into three phases. First, the primary focus of disease must be eradicated. The probability of spread to the regional lymph nodes must be evaluated in each case. When there is any significant probability, . . .