Patent ID: 7653427

Claim:
A process for determining the stage of metastatic cancer in an individual diagnosed as having a malignant tumor comprising: a. injecting a radioactive substance into the individual in an area adjacent to the tumor, and allowing a period of time to elapse necessary for said radioactive substance to migrate to a sentinel lymph node, causing the sentinel node to become radioactive and emit radiation, b. placing an ultrasound scanner and a radiation probe comprising a gamma probe or radiation detecting camera on the skin surface in the region of the sentinel lymph node, the ultrasound scanner and a radiation probe being operatively connected so that the relative position and orientation to each other and to the sentinel lymph node is mechanically or electronically fixed or determined, with the sentinel lymph node being in the field of view of the ultrasound scanner and the radiation probe aimed at the radiation emitting sentinel lymph node, the direction or orientation of the radiation probe being adjusted to obtain the maximum possible radiation count from a targeted sentinel lymph node, the direction and orientation being shown on an image display of the ultrasound scanner in real time, c. while holding the ultrasound scanner fixed, removing the radiation probe and placing a biopsy needle in the same orientation as established for the radiation probe in step b above and advancing a distal tip thereof through the skin and into the targeted sentinel lymph node, the placement of the biopsy needle being displayed on the ultrasound scanner in real time, and d. collecting a tissue sample comprising a portion of the targeted sentinel lymph node for subsequent analysis by quantitative RT-PCR to determine the presence or absence of particular molecular tumor makers within the portion removed from the sentinel lymph node.