Hi ladies
Saw my oncologist on Wednesday..my CEA marker has gone up from 8.2 to 9.6 and I’m concerned..she didn’t seem very worried but you know how it is..we worry about the slightest thing..the other marker CA153 had dropped a tiny bit
Anyone else having this happen?
Barb xx
I can't understand the markers any more. To start with my oncologist says it depends on which country you have it done as to what the "normal" level is - yours sound so low to me! My last bloods showed my CEA up about 20 points to just over 300, my CA15-3 down 30 points to under 190 and my Ca125 up to about 290. I almost had heart failure (I have not been on any treatment at all after the anti-oestrogens, Xeloda and Navelbine all eventually failed) as the next step is IV chemo but as I am not showing any symptoms other than the bloods and probably progression on scans, my oncologist says rather enjoy the current quality of life - so I am. She didn't seem terribly phased by the high figures - says she has seen them in the thousands but scans showed less progression - so I guess I will trust her and just go with the flow - and the scans!
It seems many oncologists use the markers as a vague guide but put more trust in scans so perhaps you needn't worry. Good luck.
Hi Izzy
Thanks so much for letting me know your markers..in uk CEA normal is 3 and CA153 30-40. Mine are both much too high although the Ca153 was over 1000 in April so that’s dropped substantially
Think I’m probably reading too much into it..oncologist did say the increase could be due to my having a procedure 3 weeks ago..had a GA and bone cementing on my fractured vertebrae
I never used to worry about stuff until this mbc diagnosis!!.. now overreact to everything..guess that’s normal for us ladies
All the best to you
Barb xx
Yes this damned MBC diagnosis tends to make one paranoid about every ache pain etc and as for markers.... I am actually in South Africa which has made things a bit challenging too. I see so much on this site which does not seem to be available to us yet. Not sure how long many of us have to wait?? Anyway one can only go day by day I guess. I seem to think our "normal" sounds very similar to what you quote - apparently some labs use a different base line or something - just to add to the confusion but my oncologist does believe that all sorts of things like stress, sinusitis (from which I suffer in winter) and other illnesses and procedures also fiddle with markers.
Anyway you sound good and I hope it all continues to go well with you.
Izzy xx
Tumor markers are not always reliable and alot of oncs don't use them at all for several reasons. They are not accurate for all of us. Things besides cancer can effect them. Because they are numbers they sound precise and valid but they can be neither! I've been living with metastatic bc for over 14 1/2 years and my CA27-29 has been in the "normal" range for only a few months. During long periods of stability, it has jumped around within a range of 50 to 60 points. So I don't pay too much attention to it
My onc has told me that she pays most attention to how I tell her I am feeling. Scans are second and Tumor Markers a very very very distant third. We have never used them for anything other than an indicator than it's time for scans, and even when the TMs have gone up slowly over time, it has sometimes been several years between scans. I do have a slow easy to control (so far) bunch of cancer cells. But sudden on set of a new symptom is more concerning that a bit of a wobble in TMs.
my cea just doubled from 10 to 19!! i am freaking out but my dr is not. the 27 29 went up from 332 to 364. waiting on the 15 3. my dr says that if my symptoms are non existent that is more important...but i think i'm going to opt for scans...just to be sure. i am on xeloda. they say the markers don't matter, but then why do they do them???
MBC diagnosed March 2022 and the CA 27-29 tumor marker test.
Tumor marker and New pet done
CA153 marker 
