Inclusion Criteria

Conditions for patient eligibility

Inclusion criteria:

- Patients must be female.

- Patients must be 18 years of age or older.

- Patients with stage IIA, IIB, IIIA (T1-3 and N1-2) breast cancer. Clinical N0
accepted if biopsy proven node disease.

- Patients that have biopsy proven positive axillary disease made by core needle biopsy
or fine needle aspiration .

- Patients that accept to undergo neoadjuvant chemotherapy; patients are eligible until
the day of surgery.

- Patients with bilateral breast cancer are eligible. Sentinel node biopsy is allowed
on the contralateral breast if there is no disease in the axilla prior to
chemotherapy.

- Patients that understand, accept and have signed the approved consent form.

Exclusion Criteria:

- Patients with inflammatory breast cancer.

- Patient with stage IIIB, IIIC or IV breast cancer (T4 and N3) Patients with clinical
N3 disease are excluded.

- Patients that have had previous axillary dissection or an axillary sentinel node
biopsy; (patients that have had excisional biopsy or ipsilateral tumorectomy are
eligible).

- Patients that have had previous radiotherapy to the axillary nodes

- Patients that have had mammary reduction

- Patients that are medically unfit to receive chemotherapy, as evaluated by the
treating physician.

- If the injection of blue dye is planned, patients with hypersensitivity or allergy to
isosulfan blue, Patent blue or methylene blue or radiocolloid dye are ineligible.

- Patients who are pregnant or breast feeding .

- Psychiatric or addictive disorders or other conditions that preclude the patient from
meeting the study requirements.