Cea rose quickly

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Vickilg
Vickilg Member Posts: 281 Member
in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi there. My cea was 1.8 about two months ago whi j was high for me. Old onc told me to wait a month. Switch onc and three weeks ago of was 5.9. Two weeks later it's was at 10.0. Just started chemo so don't have cea from after chemo but I am scared that it increased so fast. Is this normal? How soon is reasonable to see a decrease?

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  • Sundanceh
    Sundanceh Member Posts: 4,392 Member
    #2
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    Keep In Mind....
    that when cancer cells die off, they emit a protein into the bloodstream that raises CEA levels...this could be nothing more than that. That is a normal occurence and your CEA levels do tend to vary when you're in treatment.

    This can indicate a positive response to the treatment - that's what this sounds like.

    As always, Vicki...just remain vigilant and keep an eyeball on the numbers...you will probably see them rise and fall during the months of treatment.

    Good question:)

    -Craig
  • danker
    danker Member Posts: 1,276 Member
    #3
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    Vickilg
    Just assume this is common while getting chemo. Don't be afraid!! Lots of hugs to you.
  • janie1
    janie1 Member Posts: 753 Member
    #4
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    danker said:

    Vickilg
    Just assume this is common while getting chemo. Don't be afraid!! Lots of hugs to you.

    The 10.0 cea is before chemo
    The 10.0 cea is before chemo started, right?
    Not sure what that could be, but anything can probably play havoc. Wonder with getting the port.....what that would do?
    Anyway, bet the next one after chemo goes in the reverse direction.
    Xo
  • Doc_Hawk
    Doc_Hawk Member Posts: 685
    #5
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    Maybe false high
    Like Sundance said, this could be a false high caused by dying cancer cells. Look at it as a good thing that it only rose 3.1 points between the second and third readings instead of the 4.9 between the first two. Be confident that it will go down next time, even if only by a tenth of a point.

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