CEA and CT
Does anyone have any experience with an onc using only CEA to determine the effectiveness of the treatment? Any ideas on why he might want to do this?
Comments
-
CEA and CT
My oncologist used CEA between chemo treatments that were every 14 days. Every 4th treatement I would have a CT scan done. He explaned that the CT scan has a thinner "slice" than the PET scan and therefore could detect smaller tumors.
The treatments do work, my liver mets are much smaller than when I started and we are discussing removing what is left. Good luck and keep the faith.0 -
Hi Lauretta
Your onc seems to certainly be undecided about using the diagnostic tools. It may be that he is wanting to limit radiation exposure unless the CEA is rising. Does he/do you know if CEA is a good indicator for your husband? For some it is, for some it is not.
Don't know where you live, but you might want to check around your area and see if the newer combo CT/PET scan is available in your area. If so, and the onc agrees to have a scan/scans done you might ask for it instead of just one or the other.
Hope hubby responds well to treatment and the CEA goes down.
Marie who loves kitties0 -
ct and pet
I didn't get a PET scan until just before surgery,(6 months after discovery of cancer) my onc really only does CT scans and the reason for the PET scan was for the surgeons along with a CT scan. I had another PET scan done again I think last month which said that my "therapy was successful". Again, the PET scan was only done for the surgeon's benefit (liver surgeon). I don't know why the onc's prefer to do them rarely and I'm guessing do to radiation, who knows, I guess only way to find out is ask him why. I do get CT scans every 6 months though, and my CEA was done every chemo therapy, (I'm on Avastin only now and the onc said, no reason with my PET scan to do a CEA count every time, so today did not do a CEA count). I would sit down and discuss with your hubby's onc as to why he does this or that, he should be more then happy to explain, after all you are paying him for his time.
Take care,
Winter Marie0 -
Thank youherdizziness said:ct and pet
I didn't get a PET scan until just before surgery,(6 months after discovery of cancer) my onc really only does CT scans and the reason for the PET scan was for the surgeons along with a CT scan. I had another PET scan done again I think last month which said that my "therapy was successful". Again, the PET scan was only done for the surgeon's benefit (liver surgeon). I don't know why the onc's prefer to do them rarely and I'm guessing do to radiation, who knows, I guess only way to find out is ask him why. I do get CT scans every 6 months though, and my CEA was done every chemo therapy, (I'm on Avastin only now and the onc said, no reason with my PET scan to do a CEA count every time, so today did not do a CEA count). I would sit down and discuss with your hubby's onc as to why he does this or that, he should be more then happy to explain, after all you are paying him for his time.
Take care,
Winter Marie
for all of the replies. I guess the docs are quite variable in what they do, aren't they? I had been reading from several people who seemed to get CT scans every two months so I was kinda scratching my head. How do you know if CEA is a reliable indicator early into your treatment? My husband has only had four months of treatments, one CT at two months and three CEAs during treatment. The CT did show shrinkage and the CEA has dropped every time. That's all I know!0 -
CEA and CT scans
If your husband is actively dealing with cancer NOW and having chemo, I'd be concerned if he were only getting his CEA checked and no scans. While the CEA is often a good tool for keeping an eye on things, there are other things that can make it go up that are not directly related to cancer. Like smoking for instance. If he were a smoker and STILL smoking (wow!), that could make his CEA rise.
Cancer can grow and not always show up in the CEA too. I have CT scans every 3 months. I have my CEA checked every 6 weeks or so. Both are fairly reliable tools to monitor any tumor growth in me. So, to repeat myself, if he is undergoing treatment for cancer I would make sure he gets scanned too.
-phil0 -
Thanks, Phil,PhillieG said:CEA and CT scans
If your husband is actively dealing with cancer NOW and having chemo, I'd be concerned if he were only getting his CEA checked and no scans. While the CEA is often a good tool for keeping an eye on things, there are other things that can make it go up that are not directly related to cancer. Like smoking for instance. If he were a smoker and STILL smoking (wow!), that could make his CEA rise.
Cancer can grow and not always show up in the CEA too. I have CT scans every 3 months. I have my CEA checked every 6 weeks or so. Both are fairly reliable tools to monitor any tumor growth in me. So, to repeat myself, if he is undergoing treatment for cancer I would make sure he gets scanned too.
-phil
for the info. I tend to want one at some point as well. My husband just tends to go along with whatever the doc recommends. Of course the doc could change his mind again as he has done a couple of times already. We have two more months of chemo until this session is completed. I might push for a PET and/or CT when that is completed. Since my husband's CEA was only 17 before surgery and he had as many mets as he did, I just don't totally trust that indicator!0 -
CT Scanslaurettas said:Thanks, Phil,
for the info. I tend to want one at some point as well. My husband just tends to go along with whatever the doc recommends. Of course the doc could change his mind again as he has done a couple of times already. We have two more months of chemo until this session is completed. I might push for a PET and/or CT when that is completed. Since my husband's CEA was only 17 before surgery and he had as many mets as he did, I just don't totally trust that indicator!
I've been getting them every three months for 7 1/2 years and have not had any bad side effects. The third arm I grew really helps me play guitar better and type faster too.
;-)
They say a picture is worth a thousand words...I think the scan is just more reliable than a blood test. Don't get me wrong, things can get missed. A CT scan is only as good as the person who reads it. I hope he will get the CT scan at the end of the treatment so they can have a better idea of how successful everything was. Personally, I wouldn't push for scans every month but I do believe in monitoring things.
Just my opinion.
I do wonder why the doctor is undecided on this.
-p0 -
Light billPhillieG said:CT Scans
I've been getting them every three months for 7 1/2 years and have not had any bad side effects. The third arm I grew really helps me play guitar better and type faster too.
;-)
They say a picture is worth a thousand words...I think the scan is just more reliable than a blood test. Don't get me wrong, things can get missed. A CT scan is only as good as the person who reads it. I hope he will get the CT scan at the end of the treatment so they can have a better idea of how successful everything was. Personally, I wouldn't push for scans every month but I do believe in monitoring things.
Just my opinion.
I do wonder why the doctor is undecided on this.
-p
Imagine it cuts down on the light bill as well!
0 -
Ha haPhillieG said:CT Scans
I've been getting them every three months for 7 1/2 years and have not had any bad side effects. The third arm I grew really helps me play guitar better and type faster too.
;-)
They say a picture is worth a thousand words...I think the scan is just more reliable than a blood test. Don't get me wrong, things can get missed. A CT scan is only as good as the person who reads it. I hope he will get the CT scan at the end of the treatment so they can have a better idea of how successful everything was. Personally, I wouldn't push for scans every month but I do believe in monitoring things.
Just my opinion.
I do wonder why the doctor is undecided on this.
-p
I'm thinking of growing one too,(arm) very soon! Have a nice weekend everyone!
Donna0 -
Joe,xbarjoe said:CEA and CT
My oncologist used CEA between chemo treatments that were every 14 days. Every 4th treatement I would have a CT scan done. He explaned that the CT scan has a thinner "slice" than the PET scan and therefore could detect smaller tumors.
The treatments do work, my liver mets are much smaller than when I started and we are discussing removing what is left. Good luck and keep the faith.
Is the photo from Sea Hunt? One of my favorite programs as a kid.
Also, what does xbar stand for?
Thanks,
Blake0 -
CEAlaurettas said:Thank you
for all of the replies. I guess the docs are quite variable in what they do, aren't they? I had been reading from several people who seemed to get CT scans every two months so I was kinda scratching my head. How do you know if CEA is a reliable indicator early into your treatment? My husband has only had four months of treatments, one CT at two months and three CEAs during treatment. The CT did show shrinkage and the CEA has dropped every time. That's all I know!
Has been a very good indicator for my treatment. Sounds like he's doing VERY VERY GOOD!!!
Winter Marie0 -
Hadn't thought of thatBuckwirth said:Yep. I rarely need the nightlight anymore, but setting off the TSA radiation alarms leads to a whole series of interesting experiences...
Maybe we need special cards from our doctors that state we are legally radioactive!0 -
Thanksherdizziness said:CEA
Has been a very good indicator for my treatment. Sounds like he's doing VERY VERY GOOD!!!
Winter Marie
for the vote of confidence. I'll settle down a little bit now!0 -
Scan frequencylaurettas said:Thank you
for all of the replies. I guess the docs are quite variable in what they do, aren't they? I had been reading from several people who seemed to get CT scans every two months so I was kinda scratching my head. How do you know if CEA is a reliable indicator early into your treatment? My husband has only had four months of treatments, one CT at two months and three CEAs during treatment. The CT did show shrinkage and the CEA has dropped every time. That's all I know!
It is not common to get scanned every 2 months. The only way my oncologist would do a second scan only 2 months after a previous one is if things seemed to be sliding downhill and he needed to see what we were dealing with. Every 3 months or 6 months, depending on the patients current status is standard of care for those in treatment. I've pretty much had a PET/CT every 3 months for the last two years, due to my situation with progression and treatments. Right now I can't get opinions on my next hopeful treatments without another scan, and my oncologist really doesn't want to scan again until I am 3 months out from the last scan. The amount of radiation we go through as cancer patients can present its own set of problems. If we can limit it a bit, that is best.
If your husband had a scan 2 months into treatment that showed shrinkage, the oncologist got the information he wanted. Along with the shrinkage, and the lowering CEA with each treatment, he knows the chemo is doing its job. He will almost definitely order another scan at some point- when the need arises to reassess the situation for ongoing treatment. This could be sometime soon, or not for several months. It just depends on his particular situation, and his oncologist's usual methods.
The good news is CEA dropping paired with shrinkage of mets is a very good sign of good response to chemo!
You may want to push for a PET/CT for the next scan - it shows definition quite well if you have the combo with CT, along with showing what is metabolically active - whereas a CT only shows masses, so old dead tissue can be mislabeled. (Although you can have something metabolically active that is not cancer - like pancreatitis, or lymph nodes if you have an infection, etc.). Oncologists seem to have their favorite method for one reason or another. In my case because my progression has always just been to lymph nodes (that are only slightly enlarged), a PET/CT is the best choice. Even though the original plan for me was alternating CT and PET/CT, I've ended up with PET/CT for cancer scans (and CT for blood clot scans). The plans change as you go - to fit your personal situation the best.0 -
Scans after treatment is completedlaurettas said:Thanks, Phil,
for the info. I tend to want one at some point as well. My husband just tends to go along with whatever the doc recommends. Of course the doc could change his mind again as he has done a couple of times already. We have two more months of chemo until this session is completed. I might push for a PET and/or CT when that is completed. Since my husband's CEA was only 17 before surgery and he had as many mets as he did, I just don't totally trust that indicator!
I don't know of anyone released from treatments without a scan to show if treatment was successful. If the plan is a certain number of treatments of one type, a scan will be done at the end before deciding what to do next.
Since your husband is Stage IV signet cell with multiple mets, I don't mean to sound negative, but I would not expect treatments to be over just because he finishes 12 bi-weekly treatments. Chemo is not a cure for colorectal cancer. Chemo is used to control the spread of cancer and keep it under control when there are large solid tumors, or it is used to kill off a few random missed cells after surgery. For those of us with multiple mets, we usually need ongoing chemo, or a surgical cure if possible (and/or radiation).
I would be pretty confident that he will have a scan after the current treatment plan is done, to determine the next step.0 -
Thanks for all the infoKathryn_in_MN said:Scans after treatment is completed
I don't know of anyone released from treatments without a scan to show if treatment was successful. If the plan is a certain number of treatments of one type, a scan will be done at the end before deciding what to do next.
Since your husband is Stage IV signet cell with multiple mets, I don't mean to sound negative, but I would not expect treatments to be over just because he finishes 12 bi-weekly treatments. Chemo is not a cure for colorectal cancer. Chemo is used to control the spread of cancer and keep it under control when there are large solid tumors, or it is used to kill off a few random missed cells after surgery. For those of us with multiple mets, we usually need ongoing chemo, or a surgical cure if possible (and/or radiation).
I would be pretty confident that he will have a scan after the current treatment plan is done, to determine the next step.
Thanks for all the info Kathryn. I know that "over" sounds misleading. I am defining it as finished with this session and hoping for a little break--a couple months, maybe?! Don't know if my husband really understands that since he doesn't read anything about his cancer but I'm not going to be the one to tell him. Will just wait until he's finished with this session to see what his cancer does. Makes me kinda tired thinking about it and we have just started. Oh, well, it is what it is!0 -
CEAConnie43 said:CEA only
I'm not sure what your husbands doctors plan is. But mine did a CT scan and then a PET scan because my CEA went up.
So did you find out what was making the CEA rise. My husband has CEA of 30,however, he has clean Pet scans & clean CT scans. Last week had a biopsy and it was negative. He is 3 years remission with Colorectol Cancer???? Dr. has him on cortisone for inflamation from radiation.0
Discussion Boards
- All Discussion Boards
- 6 CSN Information
- 6 Welcome to CSN
- 121.2K Cancer specific
- 2.8K Anal Cancer
- 440 Bladder Cancer
- 306 Bone Cancers
- 1.6K Brain Cancer
- 28.4K Breast Cancer
- 391 Childhood Cancers
- 27.9K Colorectal Cancer
- 4.6K Esophageal Cancer
- 1.2K Gynecological Cancers (other than ovarian and uterine)
- 12.9K Head and Neck Cancer
- 6.3K Kidney Cancer
- 666 Leukemia
- 789 Liver Cancer
- 4.1K Lung Cancer
- 5.1K Lymphoma (Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin)
- 235 Multiple Myeloma
- 7.1K Ovarian Cancer
- 53 Pancreatic Cancer
- 486 Peritoneal Cancer
- 5.3K Prostate Cancer
- 1.2K Rare and Other Cancers
- 532 Sarcoma
- 717 Skin Cancer
- 647 Stomach Cancer
- 190 Testicular Cancer
- 1.5K Thyroid Cancer
- 5.8K Uterine/Endometrial Cancer
- 6.3K Lifestyle Discussion Boards