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CEA test

Neuroendocrine Tumors (NETs) | Last Active: 1 day ago | Replies (11)

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@gail570

I had colon cancer surgery and a bag for 7 months. Had it reversed and colonoscopy was good and blood test in June was 5.6 for CEA. Last week all blood test were normal but CEA was 5.8. Should I be concerned. Have a CT scan for 1/7/25.. Any response from anyone?

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Replies to "I had colon cancer surgery and a bag for 7 months. Had it reversed and colonoscopy..."

Hello @gail570, I can understand your concern. Once you've had cancer, any test that is even slightly out of normal can be frightening.

As you might already know, increasing CEA levels can mean many things. Here’s some info from the American Association for Clinical Chemistry. 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.”

As you can see, there are many reasons for an increase in CEA, that does not necessarily involve cancer.

I would wait for your CT scan next month, before worrying too much about this one test result. You posted this question in the Neuroendocrine Tumors support group. If your biopsy did reveal that your colon cancer was from a NET, this is a good place to post. However, we also have other discussion groups that deal with colon cancer. Here is a link to all of those discussions,
--Colorectal Cancer
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/colorectal-cancer/
In these discussions, you will meet lots of other members who have had colon cancer.

How are you feeling, @gail570? Is your appetite good?