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Breast Cancer (Expert Forum)
tumor marker
Questions posted in the Breast Cancer Forum are answered by medical professionals from The Cleveland Clinic. Topics include Breast Biopsy, Chemotherapy, Hormone Therapy, Lumps, Lumpectomy, Lymph node dissection, Lymphedema, Mammograms, Mastectomy, Radiation Therapy, Reconstruction, Self Breast Exam, and Surgery.
Doctor's Answer
by CCF-RN,MSN-JS, Sep 15, 2003 12:00AM
Dear sjo, CA27.29 is a nonspecific marker for breast cancer. The use of CA27.29 to detect breast cancer recurrence at present is controversial. Increased levels could be due to a variety of reasons such as - ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, intestinal or colonic problems, medication; Paxil, hepatitis, tuberculosis, systemic lupus. Normal values vary slightly between labs, some sources I've seen as normal <31.3 U/ml, others I've seen 38. However, conclusions cannot be drawn from a single test alone, a trend in values would be evaluated in the context of the entire clinical picture.
