Studies that assessed accuracy of sentinal node biopsy, PET, ultrasound, MRI, or CT compared to the reference standard of histological examination of lymph nodes in women with a primary presentation of endometrial cancer of any histological type or stage and that reported sufficient data to construct a 2x2 table of test performance were eligible for inclusion.
Stage of disease, where reported, varied across studies. Women underwent surgery in all studies, either open or laparoscopic. Studies were conducted in hospitals in USA, Czech Republic, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Finland and Poland. Sentinel node biopsy was performed using 2mL to 5mL of blue dye or 37 to 120MBq technetium-99m colloidal albumin. Most studies did not report details on histological method used as the reference standard; those that did all used haematoxylin and eosin staining.
Two reviewers independently assessed studies for inclusion; disagreements were resolved through referral to a third reviewer.