Just when we thought we were getting somewhere!

In March of this Year my step dad was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer, he had a successful whipples in April and has now just finished 6 months of Chemo (Capcetabine and something else..) Two weeks ago we got the results of his CT scan Which was all clear. He is now scheduled to begin Radiotherapy and chemo combined due to the fact that the tumor was so close to the vein, but his tumor marker keeps going up, it was a steady 10 or 11 all through the chemo and now it is just over 70. The consultant has never known this happen before and has looked repeatedly at teh scan results and can still not see anything. He is scheduled for a PET scan next Tuesday. Does anyone have any light they can shed on this? It seems just as we started to get our hopes up a bit they've come crashing down around us.

Hi Emma and I'm sorry that you've had some concerns over this. I understand completely (my husband, Ted, has to go and get his results from the tests done three months' after finishing chemo tomorrow and this is exactly what we're dreading). I know that there's been a sudden jump in the tumour markers and of course that needs to be investigated but if it's any consolation at all we were told that anything from 5-60 is considered "normal", ie doesn't necessarily mean that the patient has cancer and Ted's were originally over 800, reducing to within the normal range after chemo. We were advised not only to look at these tumour marker tests but the overall picture, ie general health, symptoms and tiredness to gauge Ted's health.

A PET scan is different to a CT scan because it looks at the cells and soft tissue at a metabolic level and together the scans give a clearer overall picture. Hopefully this will give the consultant all the information he needs to give you a precise picture of exactly what is happening. Let us know how your Stepdad gets on.

Nicki

Thanks Nicki, I'll be thinking of you tomorrow and will keep everything crossed for Ted. Am trying to keep positive but both my Mum and Stepdad are so down at the moment it's exhausting trying to carry them through, In the few days after the CT scan I caught a glimpse of how things used to be and now feel a bit like the rugs been pulled from under us. It does help so much being able to 'speak' to people like yourself who are so knowledgable. Thank you again x

No problem Emma, except that I'm not sure I'm any more knowledgable than anyone else! Still, I'm happy to help where I can - sharing experiences is so important when on this particular roller-coaster. Our news wasn't great either (I've done a full posting in the Advanced section of the board), so we're battling again too. Don't forget to let us know how things are going from time to time.

Best wishes

Nicki

Hi Emma,

I remember being told that the CA19-9 could increase for other reasons aswell, like an infection or an organ not functioning properly, that's why this marker is so unpredictable. My cancer had returned and my CA19-9 was 10 and under - giving a false negative in a sense.

I think you have to look at the overall picture, how your step-dad feels in himself, how his other blood tests are performing and what the CT/PET scan will show.

Kind regards,

Juliana