Role of carbon nanotracers in lymph node dissection of advanced gastric cancer and the selection of preoperative labeling time

BACKGROUND: The incidence of gastric cancer is high. The number of dissected lymph nodes was an independent factor affecting prognosis. Although preoperative labeling is helpful in lymph nodes resection, there are no guidelines for when to perform preoperative labeling. AIM: To investigate the role of nanocarbon in lymph node dissection during gastrectomy, and to discuss the relationship between the timing of preoperative injection of carbon nanoparticles and the extent of lymph node dissection. METHODS: A prospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of 307 patients with advanced gastric cancer who underwent laparoscopic surgery in the General Surgery Department of Weifang People’s Hospital between June 2018 and February 2021. The patients were randomly divided into experimental group and control group based on whether they received preoperative nanocarbon injection or not. The experimental group was divided into different groups according to the preoperative labeling time. The number of dissected lymph nodes and the number of lymph nodes with black staining were compared in each group after surgery, and the role of nanocarbon in the number of dissected lymph nodes, pathological staging, and the relationship with prognosis were discussed. RESULTS: The average number of dissected lymph nodes in the experimental group was higher than that in the control group. In the experimental group, the number of lymph node dissections and number of black-staining lymph nodes in the nanocarbon-labeling group at 2 d and 1 d before surgery were higher than in the labeling group on the day before surgery (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Preoperative nanocarbon labeling can safely and effectively guide lymph node dissection. To improve the detection rate of lymph nodes is conducive to subsequent comprehensive anti-tumor therapy.