Purpose To study the diagnostic value of imprint cytology and to improve the accuracy of the rapid diagnosis of sentinel lymph node (SLN) during the operation of breast cancer.Methods 169 SLNs during 67 operations of breast cancer were detected by both frozen section and imprint cytology, and the results were compared with the histopathological diagnosis of permanent sections.Results Of 169 SLNs, 163 cases were diagnosed correctly with frozen section (163/169, 96.45%); 162 cases were diagnosed correctly with imprint cytology (162/169,95.86%);and 166 cases were diagnosed correctly by combination of imprint cytology and frozen section (166/169,98.22%).Conclusions Combination of imprint cytology and frozen section could increase the accuracy of the rapid diagnosis of SLN in breast cancinoma operation.