Hey Craig............CEA rise?

papajedi

you said...................as the cancer cells die off, they emit a protein in the blood which can be picked up on the CEA test.

can you give me some info

John23

Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA)
(repost from previous thread)

What conditions can cause an elevated CEA?

Both benign and malignant (harmless and cancerous) conditions can
increase the CEA level. The most frequent cancer which causes an
increased CEA is cancer of the colon and rectum. Others include
cancers of the pancreas, stomach, breast, lung, and certain types
of thyroid and ovarian cancer. Benign conditions which can
elevate CEA include smoking, infections, inflammatory bowel
disease, pancreatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, and some benign
tumors in the same organs in which an elevated CEA indicates
cancer. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy can cause a temporary
rise in CEA due to the death of tumor cells and release of CEA
into the blood stream. Benign disease does not usually cause an
increase above 10 ng/ml.

From here: www.medicinenet.com


CEA and other markers

Keep in mind, that these tests don't mean much without a full and
comprehensive review of all symptoms and health situations.

"The last thing a hypochondriac needs, is a medical journal".

Sundanceh

CEA
Hi Papa

Looks like John covered the X's and O's of it.

But yes, as cells die they can emit a protein (don't know the name) and CEA levels can rise as a result.

Some fluctuation in the CEA level could be higher than a previous one as a result. Other times during chemo, I saw mine go down slightly.

As long as they are not ramping up with very high numbers, it is probably a part of the chemo cycle and cell death.

Always good to keep an eye on - for some folks CEA has been a good marker...I felt it was for me.

Hope this helps - thanks for your question.

-Craig