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Elderly Mom, CEA Test
by nojoking, Mar 10, 2008 02:33PM
My mother was diagnosed with colon cancer 14 yrs ago. A portion of her intestine was removed and no chemotherapy was required. She has regular colonoscopies, first annually, now every 3 yrs.
A few months ago she moved from CT to ME to live w/me as she ages. She takes good care of herself, never smoked, drank, etc. Naturally, she has a new doctor and a physical and blood work were performed including a CEA test. Upon the return visit for test results the doctor noted that the CEA results were elevated (10.0A) and suggested we visit an oncologist. I was concerned but was told that it was just precautionary measure.
I don't understand. Why does she need an oncologist if she doesn't have cancer? My father died of colon cancer a year before she was diagnosed. He had an oncologist, but he was very sick.
Now my mom is 84. I don't know how to explain the trip to the oncologist without worrying her. What should I say? Maybe you have cancer again, maybe not? What can I do to try to reassure her? What are the chances based on the CEA results?
Thank you so much.
A few months ago she moved from CT to ME to live w/me as she ages. She takes good care of herself, never smoked, drank, etc. Naturally, she has a new doctor and a physical and blood work were performed including a CEA test. Upon the return visit for test results the doctor noted that the CEA results were elevated (10.0A) and suggested we visit an oncologist. I was concerned but was told that it was just precautionary measure.
I don't understand. Why does she need an oncologist if she doesn't have cancer? My father died of colon cancer a year before she was diagnosed. He had an oncologist, but he was very sick.
Now my mom is 84. I don't know how to explain the trip to the oncologist without worrying her. What should I say? Maybe you have cancer again, maybe not? What can I do to try to reassure her? What are the chances based on the CEA results?
Thank you so much.
Member Comments (1)
by Fernando Roque, MD, Mar 10, 2008 09:27PM
, Mar 10, 2008 09:27PMTo: nojoking
Hi. An elevated CEA result (at least 5 ng/ml) is not a sure indication of the presence of cancer. However, since your mother had a previous history of colon cancer, a CEA value of 10.0 should make us highly suspicious of colon cancer recurrence. When you go to the oncologist, what the doctor is likely to do is to perform additional tests (e.g. abdominal CT scan, colonoscopy) to look for evidence of cancer. You can reassure her by saying that at this point, we really don't know if she has cancer again. But because she has an abnormal CEA, she needs to be examined by the doctor to investigate what's causing this. You can tell her that CEA can also be elevated in non-cancerous pancreatic and liver disease, as well as in cases of ulcerative colitis.
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