CEA went from 1.9 to 3.8 in 4 weeks--can it mean anything but recurrence?

That is a larger rise than
That is a larger rise than I've had (0.9 rise with no recurrence), but I do think it may possibly be benign. 3.8 isn't that high. Of course, it's not a good sign. Let us know what your oncologist says, please.

--Greg

CEA is just one tool... and not necessarily a reliable one
1.9 to 3.8 could be just a blip, then again, it could be an indicator, but your oncologist is correct... give it a little more time and retake the test. If it jumps again on the upwards side, then the next step would be to do the CT scan. If nothing is found on the CT scan, chances are your onc will tell you to wait another week or two and take it again. If it's still rising, then he/she may order a PET scan to see if there's any new growth, or possible growth they didn't see in previous scans that may be growing. Then again, it might be nothing other than an infection... an infection that you don't even know you have and it will clear up on it's own.

My normal CEA reading is under 2.0. If it jumps up to 3.x, it really is no need for concern but it does put us on alert because where this might be totally normal for anyone else, it is an upwards trend for me. And that is exactly what has happened to me. I had a CT scan that showed two tumours in my lungs had started growing and there's a growth of some sort in my kidney. Colon cancer does not usually spread to the kidney so this could be a new primary cancer or it could be colon cancer that has dared to spread where normal colon cancer fears to tread. My CEA jumped from 1.9 to 6.8 over the course of 3 months... and then this CT scan showed the kidney growth. So, I am now on Xeloda with the plan being that it will shrink the two tumours in the lungs and kill off any individual cells that might even be thinking of landing anywhere and starting to grow. If the kidney growth responds to the Xeloda, then we will know it is a cc met. If it doesn't respond to the Xeloda, then we can pretty much assume it is a new primary cancer... in which case we'll blast that sucker away with an RFA procedure.

So, as much as I hate the ongoing battle, the only problem I'm really experiencing is pain in the bottom of both my feet because of the Xeloda and maybe, just maybe I get tired a lot easier than I do when I'm not on chemo. But hey, if this chemo is going to kill off any potential spread, and keep the tumours that are there in control, then I'm comfortable with this. And the chemo has brought the CEA down to 5.9 and then 5.7. It has not gone back down to it's normal level yet, but my onc told me today that since it is staying roughly the same, it is considered stable... and for me not to put too much emphasis on it because we'll know more what's going on after Sept 10th when I have a CT scan to see if the chemo is working.

Cheryl