CEA-yea

Recap: Had the rise in CEA a month ago to 3.5 from previous level of 1. Pet scan negative. Did not want to wait 3 months to check again so had it drawn now and it has come back down to 0.6. I'm estatic. However, I wanted to pass along some information obtained from the book in our lab about CEA. I apologize for it being lengthy but it may be helpful for others who have the same scare in changing CEA levels.

" CEA results should not be interpreted as absolute evidence for the presence or absence of malignant disease but should be used in conjunction with information from other test procedures and from clinical evaluations of the patient tested. CEA levels are elevated in smokers; patients with inflammation including infection, inflammatory bowel disease, and pancreatitis; some patients with hypothyroidism; cirrhosis; and in some patients with noncolorectal neoplasms especially gastric, pancreatic, breast, and ovarian. CEA is not a screening test for occult cancer. Many negatives occur in patients with early carcinoma. HEPATOTOXICITY OF ANTINEOPLASTIC DRUGS, AS WELL AS TUMOR CELL NECROSIS OR MEMBRANE DAMAGE MAY CAUSE AN ELEVATION ( my emphasis since this has frequently been a question here). Radiation therapy may also induce a transient rise in CEA. CEA is more sensitive to recurrence of colonic than rectal primaries. Benign diseases do not usually cause CEA levels > 5-10 ng/ml....... A progressive rise in CEA may signal recurrence long before clinical evidence of metastases. "

Hope this information is helpful to someone else. If one notes a rise in the CEA I would recommend pressing for a recheck of that test in a month.

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