Sentinel nodes (SNs) are defined as the first draining lymph nodes from the primary tumor site, and they are thought to be the first possible site of micrometastasis along the route of lymphatic drainage from the primary lesion. Recent meta-analyses and a prospective multicenter trial of SN mapping for early gastric cancer have shown acceptable SN detection rates and accuracy of determination of lymph node status. A dual-tracer method that employs radioactive colloids and blue dyes is currently considered the most reliable method for the stable detection of SNs for early-stage gastric cancer. However the new technologies such as indocyanine green infrared or fluorescence imaging may revolutionize the SN mapping procedures in gastric cancer. For early gastric cancer, the establishment of individualized, minimally invasive treatments based on SN concept can retain the patients’ quality of life. The combination of endoscopic submucosal dissection or non-exposed endoscopic wall-inversion surgery with SN mapping and lymphatic basin dissection is expected to become a promising, ideal minimally invasive, function-preserving treatment to cure patients with cN0 early gastric cancer.