Karen and I have mentioned her CA-125 levels in a couple of posts, but not shared what this really means. Karen found a good pamphlet released by the Foundation For Women’s Cancer that has some great information in it. I’ll include a link below, but here’s a quote from the pamphlet:
CA 125 is a substance found in the blood called a glycoprotein (a sugar associated protein). It is commonly referred to as a “biomarker” — or “tumor marker” — because it provides information about the biological state of a disease (ovarian cancer) and is obtained by a blood sample from which a level can be measured. But it is more accurately considered a “tumor associated protein” because elevated CA 125 levels do not always indicate ovarian cancer and levels can misrepresent a biological state. For instance, CA 125 can be absent when disease is present, or levels can be high when no disease or no malignant disease exists. In addition, two patients with the same level can have widely different disease burdens. As you’ll see or have personally experienced, this is certainly the case for ovarian cancer patients. Nevertheless, as a tool, serial changes in CA 125 levels, if elevated, can be fairly representative of disease status and frequently very helpful in the assessment of women with ovarian cancer.
I’m including this particular paragraph because it addresses some of the frustration we’re feeling. The most recent CA-125 results were in the normal range, which is fantastic news, but what does it really mean? Nobody’s sure, except that it shows progress. It certainly means that the chemo is doing something, but not how much. The CT scan next Monday will tell us a lot more, and it seems like a year away. I wish we’d get the results right after the scan, but unfortunately we’ll have to wait even longer for the followup scheduled on Wednesday.
Karen wants to make sure everybody has access to the pamphlet about the CA-125 test, since we mention it a lot, and will probably continue to do so. If you are curious, you can download it from the Foundation For Women’s Cancer here.