ugh

[joy]

Hi everyone, every time i need support i know this is the place. i also know that i have been very lucky in my treatments and cancer control. so i don't want to come off as ungrateful, especially when there are so many of you who are stronger than i fighting so hard. i know so much about this breast cancer junk and when i work with my bc clients i am so clear a nd calm about it all. when it comes to myself, of course, i get to be such a nuthead. i had markers drawn about 3 weeks ago (they work very accurately for me) and the CA 27.29 had dropped 19 points to almost normal and cea very low in the normal range with the radical hormonal approach we are taking. i had markers drawn again last friday and the markers are both up by just a couple points (tenths for the cea). now i am worried again as the markers are so sensitive for me. i have a brain mri and ct on the 8th and that always has me freaked out too.

also is it possible to never get brain mets and still have visceral involvement? are there people out there for whom that is true in the long term?

any thoughts or helpful information would be SO appreciated.

thank you!
love,
joy

[eric]

Hi Joy,

I understand what you are going through. My wife's tumor markers seem to be very accurate for her as well and when her CEA inched up a few months to the high end of normal I was EXTREMELY nervous. Thankfully the 2 months since have seen her numbers climb back to where they were earlier. I don't know why it happened but it seems that there are many things that can influence the numbers, so I hope that you're able to relax some. I know it's easier said than done, but I hope this helps a bit.

Warmest regards,
Eric

[michele u]

Joy,
Don't you think if is is anything bad your markers would go up more then just a couple of points? I think so. Keep the Faith

[joy]

Thanks for that much needed dose of reality, Michele. Sometimes I can't see the forest through the trees.
Love, joy

[judiek]

Joy,

Tm's for me are also accurate. I had my tm's go up a bit then come back down last fall. I have been told by several people that numbers can rise do to necrotic cells (dead cells) passing through the blood. I hope this is the case for you!!

warmly,

judiek

[joy]

Thanks Judie, that is definitely good for me to keep in mind and I appreciate your good wishes. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Love, Joy