The numbers game

pattysoo
pattysoo Member Posts: 170
in Ovarian Cancer #1
Saw my oncologist on Friday for a regular appointment. He explained to me that the CA125 has a 12% margin of error. the HE4 has a similar margin of error, but I forget what he said it was. Added to that, there's just a bit of normal jumping around that the numbers do. Finally we both agreed that even if there is a rising trend (which I don't have btw) there isn't a real urgency to treat right away or even have a scan. My type of cancer doesn't recur often as a solid tumor, but rather like scattered beads. Thus it isn't easy for the scan to detect. So we both agreed that I will wait for a couple of months before having labs again and won't see a doctor until July. If I have a recurrence, I wonder how long I'll be able to withstand the anxiety before demanding treatment. I hope I have a long time before I have to make that decision. In the meantime, I'm moving to the Boston/New England area this summer and want to get settled with a gyn/oco at Dana Farber. Feel free to give me suggestions. I think I'll give them a call tomorrow and start that ball rolling.

Comments

  • LaundryQueen
    LaundryQueen Member Posts: 676
    #2
    CA-125 half life
    Just a comment that the half life of the CA-125 is 4 days (it takes 4 days for half of the stuff to leave the body). So changes shouldn't be monitored more often than once/week.
  • Tina Brown
    Tina Brown Member Posts: 1,036 Member
    #3
    Scattered beads
    Hi, I was just wondering what type of cancer you have as you referred to it as Scattered beads? I have PPC and that is how I refer to my cancer. It is interesting as you say the cancer is not easy to detect on a scan cos neither is mine.

    Tina x
  • pattysoo
    pattysoo Member Posts: 170
    #4
    Tina Brown said:

    Scattered beads
    Hi, I was just wondering what type of cancer you have as you referred to it as Scattered beads? I have PPC and that is how I refer to my cancer. It is interesting as you say the cancer is not easy to detect on a scan cos neither is mine.

    Tina x

    PPC
    Most likely I have PPC, staged at IIIc, the biopsy was never conclusive. Also my tumors are low grade. Chemo left these calcified like structures. Possibly I have a bit of a mixture since I responded quite well to chemo, in spite of a sub-optimal debulking.
  • kikz
    kikz Member Posts: 1,345 Member
    #5
    LaundryQueen said:

    CA-125 half life
    Just a comment that the half life of the CA-125 is 4 days (it takes 4 days for half of the stuff to leave the body). So changes shouldn't be monitored more often than once/week.

    I'm probably dense, LaundryQueen
    but I don't understand your comment about the CA125. Could you explain?

    Thanks,
    Karen
  • Mum2bellaandwilliam
    Mum2bellaandwilliam Member Posts: 412
    #6
    pattysoo said:

    PPC
    Most likely I have PPC, staged at IIIc, the biopsy was never conclusive. Also my tumors are low grade. Chemo left these calcified like structures. Possibly I have a bit of a mixture since I responded quite well to chemo, in spite of a sub-optimal debulking.

    Patty did you read Linda's
    Patty did you read Linda's post about low grade PPC? Very encouraging!
  • LaundryQueen
    LaundryQueen Member Posts: 676
    #7
    kikz said:

    I'm probably dense, LaundryQueen
    but I don't understand your comment about the CA125. Could you explain?

    Thanks,
    Karen

    Half life explanation
    I copied the following from a pharmacology web site:
    **********************************************************************************************
    The duration of action of a drug is known as its half life. This is the period of time required for the concentration or amount of drug in the body to be reduced by one-half. We usually consider the half life of a drug in relation to the amount of the drug in plasma. A drug’s plasma half-life depends on how quickly the drug is eliminated from the plasma. A drug molecule that leaves plasma may have any of several fates. It can be eliminated from the body, or it can be translocated to another body fluid compartment such as the intracellular fluid or it can be destroyed in the blood.
    **********************************************************************************************

    The same idea pertains to biomarkers such as the CA-125. By contrast, the half life of insulin is 5 minutes.

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