Cea marker goes to 9

[Mulomulo]

Hi guys

I did my ivorlevis surgery last august 2015.  Did pre and post surgery chemo of about 3 and 5 respectively. 

Now marker is going up.  It had been stable for almost a year.  During this time pet scan showed uptake in lymph node but surgeon quite confident it is benign.  Did a pet scan and uptake is reducibg .  so why am i getting conflicting info on cea?   Has anyone got this before.  I am 42 yrs old. 

[brucemillar]

Hi

I can't really answer your specific point "why?".

I can tell you that I also have one lymph node that has shown "changes" on both CT & PET Scans.  Last week I was given an ULtrasonic Endescope.  Doctors are confident it is not a recurrence.

[Mulomulo in reply to brucemillar]

Hi Bruce, 

The Surgeons did an FNA(Fine Needle Aspiration) on my lymph node and at that time it is Benign.

If the tumor was removed in surgery(so was 66% of my stomach and esophagus), do you know of any survival stats?

[Mulomulo in reply to brucemillar]

Hi Bruce, 

The Surgeons did an FNA(Fine Needle Aspiration) on my lymph node and at that time it is Benign.

If the tumor was removed in surgery(so was 66% of my stomach and esophagus), do you know of any survival stats?

[Hidden]

It is quite a technical question, and you need to ask your oncologist to interpret what the numbers mean.   Our bodies are not engineered like machines so there may be some natural variations in figures within an acceptable range, but they are indications of potential activity that would probably need specialist investigation or consideration.  Meanwhile, your surgeon's advice was reassuring.

[Mulomulo in reply to Hidden]

Hi Opa_AlanM, 

I have done my pet scan today. Let's see what the results say. I get scary statistics about OE. I am based in Singapore and so far the surgeons here have done a good job.

I will keep you updated.

[Hidden]

The statistics are meaningless on an individual basis because they are based on averages and there are so many individual exceptions.   Generally, though, at least as far as the UK is concerned, the outcomes are pretty good if the cancer is diagnosed in its early stages.   The surgeons do consult widely on an international basis.   The UK has round 70% adenocarcinoma which is high, but in the East squamous cell carcinoma tends to be the prevalent type.

[Mulomulo in reply to Hidden]

Hi OPA, what if the CEA is trending upwards. Based on international basis do they do chemo based on a number?