From my understanding, the reason they take it is to send it off to be checked for cancer cells, beyond that, I don’t know. I’m sure there is more reason to it, but I think that is common. Good luck with your surgery!

Ask if your hospital can do a sentinel lymph node biopsy during surgery with a stand by test doctor. If nothing is found, the sentinel node does not need to be removed
Most hospitals do not offer this.
Otherwise, sentinel node removal during surgery is a safety precaution and is the protocol.

Consider the lymph nodes like a filter- the lymph fluid circulates throughout your body. Hopefully, that filter is clear- but if it caught any cancer cells- it could change your treatment protocols. No one wants bad cells circulating looking for another home! I had three removed at the time of my surgery, and having them removed has not caused any issues. It does increase the risk of lymphedema- but with the removal of just one, I would think the risk would be minimal. Ask your surgeon to go over the details with you, so you can be comfortable with your choices moving forward. Hugs!

Thank you for this advice

When Breast cancer spreads beyond the Breast it usually goes to the Sentinel nodes and then the lymph nodes so being stage 0 and having a lymph node removed gives you a better outcome. If your Breast cancer did not spread to your lymph node then it was contained in your breast. I was stage 1 going into surgery but one sentinel node out of four tested positive so after surgery I was considered stage 2 but actually stage 4 which wasn't discovered until a week after.