1. < Pancreatic Cancer

CA 19-9 and pancreatic cancer: What do the numbers mean?

Posted by lisarlee @lisarlee, Feb 1, 2020

What is your opinion on these numbers? Was diagnosed in September 2019 and my ca 19-9 was 7500. New number yesterday was 909 after 9 chemo sessions. Is this good news or a wasted test?

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afaqsworld | @afaqsworld | Oct 9, 2020
In reply to @colleenyoung "Hi @afaqsworld, welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You'll notice that I moved your message to this..." + (show)
@colleenyoung

Hi @afaqsworld, welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You'll notice that I moved your message to this existing discussion about CA19-9 levels. I did this so you can connect with other members more easily. Click VIEW & REPLY to scroll through past posts and see replies to your questions from members.

CA19-9 is only one indicator to signal the possible need for further investigation. Will your father have additional tests to find out what is going on?

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Thanks ever so much dear...my father has been told to repeat the blood test and his PET is due as well next week...

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Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Oct 9, 2020
In reply to @afaqsworld "Onco suggests all is fine with my father...just repeat in 1week..he is expect all to be..." + (show)
@afaqsworld

Onco suggests all is fine with my father...just repeat in 1week..he is expect all to be normal...but I am stressed like hell till we get this test done...

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@afaqsworld, I bet you're stressed. That's understandable. One step at a time. Worry rarely solves problems, but putting our worries aside is much easier said than done. I get that. Whatever is causing the rise in CA19-9 levels will not dramatically change between now and when he has additional testing. It's good that his doctors are on it. Once they and you have all the results, a plan will be made.

Until that time, we're here. We're listening. If you just felt a light pressure on your shoulder, that's the virtual hand reaching to support you.

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1 reply
afaqsworld | @afaqsworld | Oct 10, 2020
In reply to @colleenyoung "@afaqsworld, I bet you're stressed. That's understandable. One step at a time. Worry rarely solves problems,..." + (show)
@colleenyoung

@afaqsworld, I bet you're stressed. That's understandable. One step at a time. Worry rarely solves problems, but putting our worries aside is much easier said than done. I get that. Whatever is causing the rise in CA19-9 levels will not dramatically change between now and when he has additional testing. It's good that his doctors are on it. Once they and you have all the results, a plan will be made.

Until that time, we're here. We're listening. If you just felt a light pressure on your shoulder, that's the virtual hand reaching to support you.

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thanks ever so so much...my dad means world to me...he has been battling Cancer since last 7years and when everything seemed to be getting better we are facing it again....I hope not...

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allboyzoo | @allboyzoo | Feb 6, 2021
In reply to @colorafo19 "My husband started out at 24,000!!!! He is now down to 64." + (show)
@colorafo19

My husband started out at 24,000!!!! He is now down to 64.

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That’s so great! My husband’s is 22,000. He’s had just two cycles of Folfirinox so it hasn’t been repeated yet. I’m praying for something hopeful!

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1 reply
beachdog | @beachdog | Feb 14, 2021

My wife's CA19-9 dropped to below 30 after her surgery 2/20/20 but has been increasing ever since. Surgical margins were 100% clean and every surgical biopsy was negative. She's has blood work every month and scans every 6 weeks. Every scan has shown nothing. She's also had circulating DNA tests also negative. Two months ago the CA19-9 doubled and last month it quadrupled. The scans from last week now show a mass on the left ovary. Prior scan that visualized that area was in August and was clear.

We won't know for sure if this is pancan spread or something else entirely until it is removed, but due to the CA19-9, it is likely.

Bottom line, for people who's CA19-9 tracks the progression of their disease, it is an indicator worth paying attention to.

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2 replies
baileycody | @baileycody | Feb 14, 2021
In reply to @beachdog "My wife's CA19-9 dropped to below 30 after her surgery 2/20/20 but has been increasing ever..." + (show)
@beachdog

My wife's CA19-9 dropped to below 30 after her surgery 2/20/20 but has been increasing ever since. Surgical margins were 100% clean and every surgical biopsy was negative. She's has blood work every month and scans every 6 weeks. Every scan has shown nothing. She's also had circulating DNA tests also negative. Two months ago the CA19-9 doubled and last month it quadrupled. The scans from last week now show a mass on the left ovary. Prior scan that visualized that area was in August and was clear.

We won't know for sure if this is pancan spread or something else entirely until it is removed, but due to the CA19-9, it is likely.

Bottom line, for people who's CA19-9 tracks the progression of their disease, it is an indicator worth paying attention to.

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My husbands CA19-9 is definitely an indicator that something is coming back, I know that’s not the case for everyone but for him it is. Pancreatic Cancer is fast moving, he had clear scans in September 2019, but his numbers were trending up, but never high, in January 2020 he was having abdominal pain and with a scan a tumor was visible.

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buckslayer | @buckslayer | Feb 14, 2021
In reply to @beachdog "My wife's CA19-9 dropped to below 30 after her surgery 2/20/20 but has been increasing ever..." + (show)
@beachdog

My wife's CA19-9 dropped to below 30 after her surgery 2/20/20 but has been increasing ever since. Surgical margins were 100% clean and every surgical biopsy was negative. She's has blood work every month and scans every 6 weeks. Every scan has shown nothing. She's also had circulating DNA tests also negative. Two months ago the CA19-9 doubled and last month it quadrupled. The scans from last week now show a mass on the left ovary. Prior scan that visualized that area was in August and was clear.

We won't know for sure if this is pancan spread or something else entirely until it is removed, but due to the CA19-9, it is likely.

Bottom line, for people who's CA19-9 tracks the progression of their disease, it is an indicator worth paying attention to.

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Beachdog our stories continue to align. My husband 's ca 19-9 has also been rising fast the past few months and we fear a drop metastasis to his colon. Scans and a biopsy so far are inconclusive but the lab marker usually doesn't lie, so we will likely be starting a new chemo regimen this week or some type of immunotherapy. He already had neuropathy from the folfirinox regimen so wants to avoid any drugs that might worsen this. PC is known for spread even after clean surgical margins, so I guess we just roll with the punches 😔. We are being told at Mayo that additional operations to remove further cancer after PC are not advised since there is likely cancer in other places as well - if it spread to one place it has or will spread to others, hence the chemo route to try and kill it off instead. Prayers to all.

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2 replies
beachdog | @beachdog | Feb 15, 2021
In reply to @buckslayer "Beachdog our stories continue to align. My husband 's ca 19-9 has also been rising fast..." + (show)
@buckslayer

Beachdog our stories continue to align. My husband 's ca 19-9 has also been rising fast the past few months and we fear a drop metastasis to his colon. Scans and a biopsy so far are inconclusive but the lab marker usually doesn't lie, so we will likely be starting a new chemo regimen this week or some type of immunotherapy. He already had neuropathy from the folfirinox regimen so wants to avoid any drugs that might worsen this. PC is known for spread even after clean surgical margins, so I guess we just roll with the punches 😔. We are being told at Mayo that additional operations to remove further cancer after PC are not advised since there is likely cancer in other places as well - if it spread to one place it has or will spread to others, hence the chemo route to try and kill it off instead. Prayers to all.

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The Johns Hopkins tumor board will be reviewing my wife's case tomorrow. Next week, we'll have a call the the JH oncologist who oversaw her folfirinox treatments. We're hoping that there's a clinical trial she can qualify for because she's probably not up to more folfirinox. The neuropathy is already debilitating. Folfirinox was effective for the particular mutation in the original tumor but we'll need new biopsies to see if the new tumor has different mutations before deciding on treatment. According to her local oncologist, the small size of the tumor on the ovary will require removal of the ovary rather than just a biopsy. We'll also schedule a consult with an ob/gyn oncologist. Lots of decisions but we need to act fast.

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1 reply
buckslayer | @buckslayer | Feb 15, 2021
In reply to @buckslayer "Beachdog our stories continue to align. My husband 's ca 19-9 has also been rising fast..." + (show)
@buckslayer

Beachdog our stories continue to align. My husband 's ca 19-9 has also been rising fast the past few months and we fear a drop metastasis to his colon. Scans and a biopsy so far are inconclusive but the lab marker usually doesn't lie, so we will likely be starting a new chemo regimen this week or some type of immunotherapy. He already had neuropathy from the folfirinox regimen so wants to avoid any drugs that might worsen this. PC is known for spread even after clean surgical margins, so I guess we just roll with the punches 😔. We are being told at Mayo that additional operations to remove further cancer after PC are not advised since there is likely cancer in other places as well - if it spread to one place it has or will spread to others, hence the chemo route to try and kill it off instead. Prayers to all.

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Best of luck on this new leg of your wife's journey!

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rtw007 | @rtw007 | May 18, 2021
In reply to @lisarlee "Has he had scans showing tumor shrinkage?" + (show)
@lisarlee

Has he had scans showing tumor shrinkage?

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That is so encouraging! My dad's is 21,499. Would you mind sharing with me what treatment your husband got and how advanced the cancer was when it was diagnosed?

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