It was mentioned here a while back.  I am sure that the other ladies who have been around a while will confirm.  Let me see if I can find the posts here in the archives.
~Tascha

OK, checked the archives and Litdoc had mentioned it in a post dated 5/01/06 "ca-125"  
~Tascha

thanks, I'll check it out.

Hi ladies --
I've cut and pasted the information below from http://www.medicinenet.com/ca_125/article.htm. PLEASE SEE PARAGRAPH III SPECIFICALLY. There's a lot more information on the website, so maybe you'd like to check it out directly. Also, there was recently an article in Newsweek that mentioned that many gyn oncologists today are looking at scores below 65 to be in the normal range.
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"What does an elevated CA 125 mean?

It is not possible to state the meaning of an abnormally high CA 125 without additional information about the particular patient being evaluated. The reason is that this protein can be increased in many different benign and malignant conditions. The two most frequent situations in which CA 125 is used is to monitor patients with a known malignancy or as one of several tests in the workup of a patient suspected of having a tumor.

In the patient who is known to have a malignancy, such as ovarian carcinoma, the CA 125 level can be monitored periodically. A decreasing level indicates effective therapy while an increasing level indicates tumor recurrence. Because of test variation, small changes are usually not considered significant. A doubling or halving of the previous value would be important.

In the patient who is being evaluated for a pelvic mass, a CA 125 level greater than 65 is associated with malignancy in approximately 90% of cases. However, without a demonstrable mass, the association is much weaker.

What conditions other than ovarian cancer can cause an increased CA 125?

Benign conditions which can elevate CA 125 include infections of the lining of the abdomen and chest (peritonitis and pleuritis), menstruation, pregnancy, endometriosis, and liver disease. Benign tumors of the ovaries can also cause an abnormal test result. Increases can also be seen in malignancies of the uterine tubes, endometrium, lung, breast, and gastrointestinal tract."

I was just at the oncologists office yesterday, and he repeated that the normal range is 35 and under. On a good note though, my CA125 is now 14!! - this is the lowest it's ever been - Yea!!

That is such GOOD news.

:)

You know I think that news has made my weekend.



WELL DONE!

Has it ever jumped around a little??

Well, it was 46 at time of diagnosis, then right after my surgery it was 17. It went up to 18 during chemo (and caused me much panic, as you can imagine!) and at my last Dr's appointment it was 20 - this is when I had a full blown meltdown. All I kept thinking was that my chemo hadn't worked etc.. but, there you have it - now it's 14. I suppose I should get used to it bouncing around a little - I was just thrilled because it came down on it's own, after I had finished my chemo. Hopefully, one day, I'll make it into the single digits!

that's great, thanks for the info. that's what's been happening to me too. Enjoy the weekend

Thanks for the back up info!!  The percocet has me a tad foggy and I am glad you saw this post!  How is everything with you?  Good I hope!
~Tascha

Dearest Friend --
I am doing well, and getting ready to go see my children in France.  The question is: how are YOU? Give us a full report when you feel like it?!
Annette

I wonder if the "65" mentioned in the article is not simply a typo. 35 is the only number I have ever heard.

Mine is now at 12.1 after bouncing from 11 to 13 after chemo. Just a fluctuation but still I am glad it's down again.