Another question everyone.
I still don't know what the senior radiologist thinks about the ct scan suggesting a met on my liver but I've had a copy of my latest blood results today.
Last month my CA153 cancer markers rose from 22 to 26 and they are still at 26 this month (normal range is up to 25). They had been at 22 since last February. I'd really like hear your comments on the rise. Do you think it's significant?
Hi Julie ! Sorry to hear about the node on the liver but let’s hope it’s benign!... I just had a polyp removed in a routine nhs bowel screening come back as benign , but i must admit it did worry me whilst waiting to hear the result ... so I know how you must feel !
Also I was told under 30 is the normal range for CA153 . Mine have always been 18-22 when I have been ‘stable ‘, so I don’t think a rise from 22 to 26 is that significant and can be due to non cancer related reasons . Take care x
Thanks Teddielottie. I've had a copy of the report today and it's incredibly vague so I'm hoping it is benign. It's easy to think that everything is cancer and forget that we get everything everyone else gets as well.
Glad to hear your polyp was benign! The waiting to find out is always the worse part.
Thanks for your thoughts on the cm rise 🙂 Jx
Happy to hear your good news.
Would love to help but my medical team never talks about markers .I actually just checked my latest letter ( July) for info and it still shows marker results as pending for May and no further result after that ... I started at 30 in August then 42 then 36, 34... The disease progression indentified in April PET was not reflected in markers and Drs only seem to rely on PET scan to establish treatment's response...Hope you get your answer soon. Take care.
Thanks Sandra, that's what I thought, it feels good to have some reassurance. 😊
Hello Julie. The rise in your markers are not significant. Mine has been going up by 10 to 12 points since last month which is why my oncologist ordered a PET scan. He said on their own, markers are not significant but a continuous upward trend needs looking into and should be correlated with the results of a scan. In the end they will rely on the scan results.
I have had a Liver nodule since before my diagnosis and it is a benign hematoma so yours may be one of those because my onc said those types can grow anytime. Let’s hope and pray that it is one of those benign ones🙏 Maria
Thank you Maria 😊 that is good to know Jx
Every doctor who I have spoken to at Sloan has said markers are not the best measure. I cannot remember mine exactly from through the years since my orig diagnosis in 2012, but I think it went up 1 point in 2019 and there is a met in my hip. But...they never did a CT/PET 7 years ago, so who knows how long it was there. Just like there are mammograms before breast cancer, we could use a test besides CT/ PET for metastatic. Think of it this way. We know what is going on and are being treated. How many are metastatic and do not know. It is small and lurking. I have friends who are 15 and 20 year survivors who never do followups as they hit the magical five years. Which we now know is a fallacy.
Yes, things have improved so much in the last few years, and you are right about the 5 year mark. In my area there are no real follow up, you have to tell the doctor if you notice something and as we all know most symptoms of return can be mistaken for other things, or there are no symptoms. My friends struggled with my relief when my mets were found, but like you said there must be so many people living with mbc and not knowing it. Jx
The marker change is so tiny I wouldn’t worry
Mine never went below 118 even when I was stable and as Sandra explained there are so many things other than progression that can alter them
I’ve had many sleepless night worrying about markers so I understand how you feel...in some ways I’d rather not know but then I’d worry about not knowing..ugh
Barb xx
Thanks Barb 😊 Yep you are right, it's amazing how many things we can find to worry about! The human mind is very creative! Jx
Seconded ! ... I can’t believe I even put off an opticians appointment for 18 months for fear of being told I had brain mets ... until my reading glasses snapped , so ended up there this week ...to be told my eyes / vision are good for a 55 year old !! 🙄
I am thinking that the CA 27.29 is the same thing as the european CA 15.3 ... am I wrong? CA 27.29 is what I get every 3 months to monitor my tumor markers. I found this article, please read as it gives info I didn't know and the dr. didn't tell me; especially the part about mouse antigens ... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! I'm going to post this article as well, but wanted to include it here for you for ease of reading! God bless you and Heavenly Father please heal us all in Jesus name, amen! <3 xoxo
verywellhealth.com/cancer-a...
Thanks, that's an interesting article.
I've had my CA 27.29 markers measured as well but only once and they were also within normal range. I have my ca15-3 done every month.
Jx
I have no idea what my markers are. My oncologist (and others at the Cancer Center) say that a rise or a dip is no indication of anything. I was on other forum boards where the ladies would get so upset about their markers and keep charts and all. I just told my onco, I don't want/need copies of anything. I just need to know it's still working or it's not and what the new treatment will be. Cancer is not taking any more of my life than I have to give it. I know it is hard when one has cancer, but sometimes a headache is just a headache. Best of luck.
I pray the liver node is benign. I'm not sure about your CA # because my onc doesn't discuss it.
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