Tumour Markers - CA15-3

Mereda

From what I can tell, tumour markers can be a useful guide for disease reduction and progression but not always and not for everyone.

A friend with recent dx bc mets had CA15-3 reduce from over 185 to under normal (lab states <30 normal) on Xeloda.

What has been experience of others with CA15-3 while in partial or complete remission ie do numbers keep trending down until they eventually flatten out and then rise again until it gets so high that the onc changes the meds or do they fluctuate but generally stay under normal (30) but then eventually start to rise?

New Flower

Hi and welcome

Hi 

everyone is different. I was on Xeloda for 8 months for bones and it did work well for me. the good news - Xeloda is working for your relative and the liver lesion improvement correlates well with markers going down. It is not always the case, however in does work for your relative. How long to stay on the same drug if the drug works depends on side effect and strategy . Talk to your oncologist about it. I switched from Xeloda to clinical trials and then to anti estrogen therapy.

Good luck and keep us posted

Mereda

New Flower said:

Hi and welcome

Hi 

everyone is different. I was on Xeloda for 8 months for bones and it did work well for me. the good news - Xeloda is working for your relative and the liver lesion improvement correlates well with markers going down. It is not always the case, however in does work for your relative. How long to stay on the same drug if the drug works depends on side effect and strategy . Talk to your oncologist about it. I switched from Xeloda to clinical trials and then to anti estrogen therapy.

Good luck and keep us posted

Xeloda

Thanks for the reply, New Flower.

I'd like to see a good run from Xeloda as it seems to do particularly well for both bone and liver mets.

I'm not sure how long it keeps the mets at bay but the 8 months you got does not surprise me.

It seems to be well tolerated with few side effects.

Can I ask why you stopped Xeloda - did it stop working or did you decide to go on the trial for other reasons and are you using tumour markers like CA 15.3 to monitor treatment?

Good luck with the radiation treatment if that's what's next.

New Flower

Mereda said:

Xeloda

Thanks for the reply, New Flower.

I'd like to see a good run from Xeloda as it seems to do particularly well for both bone and liver mets.

I'm not sure how long it keeps the mets at bay but the 8 months you got does not surprise me.

It seems to be well tolerated with few side effects.

Can I ask why you stopped Xeloda - did it stop working or did you decide to go on the trial for other reasons and are you using tumour markers like CA 15.3 to monitor treatment?

Good luck with the radiation treatment if that's what's next.

Hi Mereda

Hi Mereda,

 I will respond to your questions later next week.

New Flower

Mereda said:

Xeloda

Thanks for the reply, New Flower.

I'd like to see a good run from Xeloda as it seems to do particularly well for both bone and liver mets.

I'm not sure how long it keeps the mets at bay but the 8 months you got does not surprise me.

It seems to be well tolerated with few side effects.

Can I ask why you stopped Xeloda - did it stop working or did you decide to go on the trial for other reasons and are you using tumour markers like CA 15.3 to monitor treatment?

Good luck with the radiation treatment if that's what's next.

Mereda - it took long time to answer your questions

We have been following my conditions using CA 27 -29 tumor markers and it was working for 5 years. Lately, while my CA 27 29 was very low I had a progression. Cancer fooled us we lost coulpe of months because we trusted my blood test results and low tumor markers patten.

We did stopped Xeloda  for two major reasons:(1) side effects and (2) I did not want cancer to become resistant to Xeloda. My oncologist agreed because she was excited about clinical trials and experimental drug BKM 120. After 3 months on the trial I had servere side effects from BKM 120, After that I have been on Faslodex injections for 15 months and markers were good. Recentely I had a progression and we add Femara and radiation localy to the area where cancer have progressed.

Theoretically, I still can go back on Xeloda if I need to with hope it will work again or try something else and then go back on Xeloda.

Keep us posted on your relative conditions. Good luck