Simple and quick diagnostic techniques used during breast cancer surgery can spare most women from a second surgery to remove affected lymph nodes, according to UC Davis Cancer Center researcher Richard Bold. Results from the sentinel lymph node biopsy – the current standard for identifying metastatic disease – can take up to two weeks and lead to a second surgery if results are positive. However, two well-established procedures known as touch prep and frozen section analyses can take place during the initial breast tumor surgery to detect in the majority of cases whether or not lymph nodes should be removed at the same time. Study results appeared in the Annals of Surgical Oncology.