- Anterior axillary nodes: these nodes receive the lymph coming from lymph vessels of the skin in the anterior thoracic wall.
- Posterior axillary nodes: these nodes receive the lymph coming from lymph vessels of the skin in the posterior thoracic wall.
- Internal thoracic nodes: these nodes receive lymph from deep lymph vessels of the anterior parts of the intercostal spaces. On the left side, the lymph passes into the thoracic duct; on the right side the lymph drains into the bronchomediastinal trunk.
- Posterior intercostal nodes: these nodes receive lymph from the deep lymph vessels in the posterior parts of the intercostal spaces. The lymph then enters the thoracic duct.
Mediastinum:
The nodes in the mediastinum drain the lymph from the mediastinal structures. The lymph drains to the bronchomediastinal trunks scattered in the mediastinum and then into the thoracic duct.
Thoracic duct:
The thoracic duct transfers to the blood the lymph coming from the lower limb, pelvic cavity, abdominal cavity, left side of the thorax and the left side of the head, neck, and left arm.
The thoracic duct starts as a dilated sac known as the cisterna chyli and ascends up along the right side of the descending aorta. It passes through the aortic opening in the diaphragm and crosses the median plane behind the oesophagus, reaching the left border of the oesophagus at the lower border of the fourth thoracic vertebra and entering the root of the neck at the left edge of the oesophagus. In the root of neck, the duct receives the left jugular, subclavian and bronchomediastinal lymph trunks, although those trunks may drain directly into the large veins. The thoracic duct then bends behind the carotid sheath and the front vertebral vessels and turns downward in front of the left phrenic nerve. After that, the duct crosses the subclavian artery to enter the left brachiocephalic vein.
Right lymphatic duct:
The right lymphatic duct is formed by joining the right jugular, subclavian and bronchoediastinal trunks which drain lymph from the right side of the head and neck, the right upper limb and the right side of the thorax. These trunks also open into the great veins at the root of the neck. The duct opens into the beginning of the right brachiocephalic vein.