What is remission?

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  • steveja
    steveja Member Posts: 41
    #22
    beaumontdave said:

    Perhaps NKED would be more

    Perhaps NKED would be more accurate- no known evidence of disease, but celebrating a good report, or continued lack of disease seen by tests, is a thing here. Hope comes in many little things, as can anxiety and despair. Emphasizing the positive was all I had during the hardest year of my life[so far], when that damned CEA number was the only constant amid more scans, tests, and scopes than I thought were even allowed. I'm more than happy to hear anyone "crow" about what they perceive as good news, I'm sure most understand the tenacious nature of neoplasms, and the inevitable march towards mortality. It seems even carefully chosen ignorance has it's place. Hard truths arre always there to be stared down, but who wants to dwell there?......................................Dave

    Hey Beaumontdave

    Hey Beaumontdave

    >when that damned CEA number was the only constant

    Wish mine was constant.  My CEA has been technically in the 'elevated' range with a rising trend  for over a year now.

    The inevitable mortality part doesn't bother me so much as the uncertainty.  I'm caregiver to my disabled wife,... how do you plan for two very different alteranate futures?

  • NewHere
    NewHere Member Posts: 1,429 Member
    #23
    Trubrit said:

    HA!

    That is so funny. No wonder we get on so well, our sense of humour is the same. 

    Tru

    Great Minds Tru

    Though you should be a bit concerned if you think like me. Laughing

  • SandiaBuddy
    SandiaBuddy Member Posts: 1,381 Member
    #24
    steveja said:

    NED - There is an old

    NED - There is an old aphorism, "absence of evidence is not evidence of absence".  It's  often used to refute a logical fallacy of "argumentum ignorantium", argument from ignorance.  It's all well and good that there is no evidence of disease,  but the immediate question should be "what evidence was collected?", and "what is the diagnostic value of this evidence?".

    CEA levels  have poor diagnostic accuracy.  CTs with sufficient resolution will see lots of potential tumors, that must be studied over time for growth.   PET scans can often identify cancerous tumors by their glucose uptake, but not until they approach a size and density .. so the sensitivity is  good(few false positives), but the specificity is bad (lots of false negatives till tumors are large enough).

    Some of the new ctDNA blood tests (aka liquid biopsy)  like CanerSEEK (Johns-Hopkins) promise only marginal early sttage sensitivity (~50% false positives) but terrific specificity (99% true negatives). meaning the test has great negative predictive value.

    I might crow about being NED if a test with the reputed stats of CancerSEEK was negative. Until then, NED  mostly an argument from ignorance instead of negative evidence.

     

    "Ignorance"

    I am rather fond of "ignorance" of cancer.  It kind of relates back to my salad days post.  Any day I do not think about cancer is a good day.

  • beaumontdave
    beaumontdave Member Posts: 1,289 Member
    #25
    steveja said:

    Hey Beaumontdave

    Hey Beaumontdave

    >when that damned CEA number was the only constant

    Wish mine was constant.  My CEA has been technically in the 'elevated' range with a rising trend  for over a year now.

    The inevitable mortality part doesn't bother me so much as the uncertainty.  I'm caregiver to my disabled wife,... how do you plan for two very different alteranate futures?

    The cea test rose soon after

    The cea test rose soon after the original colectomy, by increments steady until they were certain I had lesions, even when two needle biopsies didn't get a positive result. The time frame was around three years by the time they went into the liver to get the three masses out. Then the process of the rising cea, the uncertainty of the the mass, and the nearly three year interval of waiting for surgery, played out again. So I do understand the anxiety that damned number can cause. After the third surgery, my right lung had significant fluid retention, which the onc/surgeon said could likely be cancer caused. This set off a search that involved scopes both ways, needle effusions of the lung , and scans every quarter, CT followed by PET, for a year. During the course of that year I cared for my wife until she died in our living room of a brain tumor she fought for 6 1/2 years. Other than a trip to the mortuary to set up the arrangements, I couldn't plan nor think beyond the next days work, or who could give her the liquid morphine every two hours, get her to the potty chair or toilet, feed her etc. Thankfully my son was turning 20, and working with me part of the time and my adult daughter lived in the back half of the house, with my 5 young grandkids, though her schedule made things tricky. I managed to keep my business going throughout that time, but alot of that year[2015] was and is a blur, and other than putting one foot ahead of the other and going task to task, I couldn't tell you how else I dealt with it all. I'm sorry you have to deal with your situation, it's hardships and uncertainties, and I hope you have support to get you through. The one thing that kept me from being overwhelmed was simply staying in the moment, not overthinking things, or looking down that path. I wish you the best of outcomes, and the strength needed to get you through............................Dave

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