2011 Jun;22 Suppl 2:S15-7. Would you mind me asking what stage your colon cancer was? Epub 2009 Oct 27. Frankly, I don't think doctors and medical scientists know everything around what CEA means to someone's prognosis. However a steadily increasing trend does merit attention His CEA level increased significantly during oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy and declined to a near normal level after completion of therapy. Does anyone have a similar experience to this? My cancer was stage 1, T2 with 27 clean lymph nodes and low grade tumor. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. False-positive results greater than 15 ng/mL are rare, and all confirmed CEA levels greater than 35 ng/mL were associated with cancer recurrence. The testing I mentioned in my first post in this topic was all done in a 2 week span. Joint pain. I've been off of chemo since December 15, 2016 and my CEA has gradually moved from 1.2 in December to 3.4 yesterday. Certain types of cancer can increase your CEA levels, but you can have high CEA without having cancer. I hope you have someone in your life holding your hand right now and helping you get through this traumatic time. Every colonoscopy he was removing anywhere from 2 to 6 polyps. I can certainly understand your concern about the increase", "@spedteacher At the request of @hopeful33250 I am responding to you. Elevated levels are also seen in benign breast disease, cirrhosis, hepatitis, tuberculosis, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis - and this . Locker GY, Hamilton S, Harris J, Jessup JM, Kemeny N, Macdonald JS, Somerfield MR, Hayes DF, Bast RC Jr; ASCO. Search for: In addition, levels >20 ng/ml before therapy may be associated with cancer which has already spread (metastatic disease). Healthcare providers dont use these tests to diagnose cancer. It wasnt out of the colon. Can stress raise CEA levels? Serum CEA levels fluctuate over time in healthy individuals, and the intraindividual variation has been reported to be about 30% . Anticancer Drugs. I've never seen any studies or literature discussing post surgery/chemo outcomes with higher CEA baselines. Thank you and I will let you know when I have some news to share. I can certainly understand your concern about the increase in the CEA number. It is concluded that a rise in CEA to greater than 8 ng/ml indicates with high degree of certainty relapse or disease progression in colorectal cancer patients. Stress hormones can inhibit a process called anoikis, which kills diseased cells and . Test Details. (Btw, my recent surgery was the day after yours. Cochrane reviews (highly respected meta-studies that are often used as guidelines) suggest a CEA of 10 as a trigger to start looking for recurrence. As a result, this test cannot establish a cancer diagnosis on its own and is not used as a general screening tool for cancer. Truth is of course, that your CEA, like your weight, can fluctuate for no reason at all. It instead should be used in people whove been previously diagnosed with certain types of cancer, most commonly colorectal cancer. 1998-2023 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. J Clin Oncol. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Your healthcare provider will help you understand the risks of the test beforehand. Confirmation of CEA elevation in this range before initiating imaging studies may be appropriate. We did blood screening through the Mayo clinic and they came back that I had a predisposition for polyposis. Can stress raise CEA levels? All Rights Reserved. Talked to my CRC surgeon about what is going on. And for some people, CEA isn't even a good indicator. What is the normal range for CEA blood levels? Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Acta Oncol. The study, which followed 96 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), found that those who felt more stress and anxiety about about their condition also had a higher volume of cancer cells in their blood and higher blood levels of markers for advanced disease. In addition, levels >20 ng/ml before therapy may be associated with cancer which has already spread (metastatic disease). It is just one tool in the oncology toolbox. Any use of this site constitutes your agreement to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Conditions of Use linked below. Doctors don't use the CEA test to make a first-time diagnosis of cancer. ~Ellen. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. Please enable it to take advantage of the complete set of features! But this test isnt used in isolation. https://labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/cea/tab/test/ which states Increased CEA levels can indicate some non-cancer-related conditions, such as inflammation, cirrhosis, peptic ulcer, ulcerative colitis, rectal polyps, emphysema, and benign breast disease.. I continued with FOL-FOX and erbitux until April 5th 2017 when oxilplatin was stopped. Yes. Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 04/11/2022. Your increase is very small too, so I would suspect stress might be the issue there. Why is the separation of executive legislative and judicial powers necessary? Typically AFP increases by about 10% as the result of smoking tobacco. The CEA is measured in the blood and the normal range is <2.5 ng/ml in an adult non-smoker and <5.0 ng/ml in a smoker. These are usually less than 10 ng/ml. Our findings clearly indicated that immobilization stress results in enhanced serum CEA level whether the stress is acute or chronic. 1 in 4 is pretty significant. It means a protein with a lot of sugars added to it by normal or cancerous cells. In remission, you may need regular CEA tests to watch for possible recurrences. Before But the tests can show important information if you already know you have cancer. What can cause a false positive CEA? How frustrating it is when you get on the scales after eating healthy and find you've gone up 5 tenths of a pound. 2004;43(5):495-8. doi: 10.1080/02841860410032380. The Onc wasn't worried, but then it's not his test score, so I was, like you, nervous until the Dec. test, when it finally bumped down to 2 again. I had melanoma on my". J Natl Compr Canc Netw. This has been going on for the past 2 years. Unauthorized use of these marks is strictly prohibited. The normal range is 0 to 2.5 ng/mL (0 to 2.5 g/L). At onset i had Cea level of >4000 ng/ml. I've been dealing with higher than normal CEA for now coming up on 4.5 years. Accessed 4/11/2022. Will you come back and let me know how your appt goes, and how you are doing? Hi Dianne, My oncologist orders my blood work to be done every 3 weeks and always includes the CEA test as well How long does it take for CEA to go down? 9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44195 |, Important Updates + Notice of Vendor Data Event, (https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/cea-test/), (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/cea-test/), (https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/thoracentesis), Visitation, mask requirements and COVID-19 information, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Institute (R. Tomsich). It helps to talk with others about their experiences. Tobacco use can lead to elevated CEA levels. I've had Stage IIa with a resection of the ascending and part of transverse colon, all lymph nodes (22) were clean. As stress related to workout frequency, intensity, and calorie demand increases throughout a season, cortisol levels slowly increase as well. Posted by Dianne @diannechildress, May 31, 2017. That surgery was done January 2016. Other Conditions Can Cause Elevated CA 15-3 Levels. CEA is a protein normally found in the tissue of a developing baby in the womb. Can stress raise CEA levels? "Chronic stress also can help cancer grow and spread in a number of ways," Sood says. Research indicates that false-positive results are reported with concentrations as high as 35 ng/mL. Declining levels of testosterone may be a red flag for impaired levels of muscle repair. Thanks for your concern. I'm tagging a few other members who may also have experience", "@colleenyoung @diannechildress My CEA has been staying between 1.7 and 2.4 since my colon cancer was". Im tagging a few other members who may also have experience with fluctuating CEA levels. Ng SL, Burns WI, Snyder RD, Newnham GM, McLachlan SA, Liew D, Dowling AJ. The numbers do not correspond with where I'm at in terms of tumor growth. All the studies I've seen discuss pre surgery CEA levels. This must be confirmed , as the CEA test by itself is not specific enough to substantiate a recurrence of a cancer. Do you see the paradox in all of this? The false-positive rates of CEA according to level were as follows: 5.110.0 ng/mL, 99.5%; 10.115.0 ng/mL, 87.2%; 15.120.0 ng/mL, 100.0%; >20.0 ng/mL, 33.3%. False-positive CEA test results in the range of 5 to 15 ng/mL are common. It is concluded that a rise in CEA to greater than 8 ng/ml indicates with high degree of certainty relapse or disease progression in colorectal cancer patients. CEA dropped back down to 5.4 and 5.2. It can be safely used in pregnant/breastfeeding women as well as in children. I have had my mammogram done and it is clear, I dont have any more colon so it cant be colon cancer, I had a hysterectomy when I was in my 20s so that rules out ovarian cancer. We did colonoscopies for almost 7 years and my gastroenterologist decided that we should remove the remainder of the colon to eliminate any further polyps. The normal range for CEA in an adult non-smoker is <2.5 ng/ml and for a smoker <5.0 ng/ml. CEA stands for carcinoembryonic antigen. Although an elevated level of a tumor marker may suggest the presence of cancer, this alone is not enough to . The doctor had my blood sent to the Mayo clinic for testing and genetic screening. I feel fine, exercising, not losing weight.I made an appointment to see my GP this coming week to share these results. When You Breathe In Your Diaphragm Does What. Ok. http://www.cochrane.org/CD011134/COLOCA_detecting-recurrent-colorectal-cancer-testing-blood-carcino-embryonic-antigen-cea. In adults, an abnormal level of CEA may be a sign of cancer. Healthy adults should have very little or no CEA in their body. So we're all scratching our heads wondering what is going on. In addition, people who smoke cigarettes often have higher than normal CEA levels. They are not very "specific," meaning non-cancer health issues can also cause these levels to be higher. Oxaliplatin is a platinum-based chemotherapy that is an integral part of several regimens for colorectal cancer. a signal of prostate disease, was three times higher for men with high levels of stress! I am going to see my GP in an hour. Thank you for any help or advice! The blood level of this protein disappears or becomes very low after birth. There's lots of scientific research to prove it. My oncology surgeon, on the other hand, said that I'm one of those people who won't be able to use a CEA for diagnosis - it was 2 ish prior to surgery and 2 ish after surgery. Its typically used for monitoring response to treatment including relapses and to look for possible recurrences. Cancer antigen 125 (also known as carbohydrate antigen 125 or CA 125) is an antigen first identified by Bast et al. All of my other blood and urine numbers came out within a normal range. I just found out today (7/26) that by CEA increased to 5.9. Mine was Stage 1 with T2 tumor, 23 lymph nodes with no cancer spread. My CEA level on 7/11 was 5.1. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. But then they turn around and say high CEA numbers prior to surgery is a prognostic indicator of higher chances of recurrence and lower 5 year survivability rates. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Interested in more discussions like this? Can stress raise CEA levels? Probably not until next week bc my doctor will be out of the office the rest of the week. Your healthcare provider may use a CEA test to guide cancer treatment or to see if treatment is working.