CA 19-9 tumor marker during treatment
CA 19.9 tumour marker test at own risk only for monitoring and control purposes for people who are in the Netherlands during treatment abroad.
The test determines the amount of CA 19-9 (cancer antigen 19-9) in the blood.CA 19-9 is a tumor marker, a substance produced primarily by cancer cells. IfCA 19-9 is released from the cell, it can end up in the blood. The substance is not involved in causing cancer.
When ordering you need to indicate at 'remarks' that you agree with sending the results to Bloedwaardentest and accept the possibility that mentally incriminating results may be found.
We can only perform the tests and give you the measured values, for further interpretation of these tests you need to turn to a medical specialist.
Tumor markers are substances, usually proteins, that the body makes in response to cancer or that are made by the cancer itself. Some tumor markers belong to one type of cancer, others are found in several types. These substances do not prove that there is a tumor: we find them also in other diseases and even in healthy people. The results alone, therefore, do not tell the whole story. Tumour markers can help to make a diagnosis, but only in combination with other tests. The substances mainly tell a hospital a lot about the course of the disease.
Reference values forCA 19-9 vary among laboratories. Reference values forCA 19-9 are between 0 and 37 kU/L (0-37 U/ml).
With elevated values ofCA 19-9, it is not immediately clear what type of cancer a patient has. The doctor needs other types of tests for that. A lowCA 19-9 does not mean that someone does not have cancer. Some people cannot makeCA 19-9.
But if someone has elevated levels in a certain type of cancer, the doctor can measureCA19-9regularly and see if the therapy is working (thenCA 19-9 drops) or if the cancer is coming back or growing (thenCA 19-9 rises).
It is important thatCA 19-9 is always determined by the same laboratory during the continuation of therapy. This is because there are differences between determination methods of the laboratories.
Slightly increased
In some healthy persons slight (stable) elevations ofCA 19-9 in the blood are observed. This is also the case with inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis), gall stones, cystic fibrosis and liver diseases. In these cases the increase is temporary.
Moderately-strongly increased
Moderate to very large increases are found in patients with a certain type of pancreatic cancer (excretory duct pancreatic cancer): cancer in the tubes of the pancreas that secrete digestive juices. These secretions are needed to digest food such as fats and carbohydrates (sugars). In 95% of pancreatic cancers, this is the tissue in which the pancreatic tumor originates. Moderately to strongly elevated values are also found in cancer of the bile ducts or stomach. Elevated values forCA 19-9 are also found in patients suffering from other types of cancer, such as gallbladder cancer or colon cancer.
Lowered
After a successful treatment or removal of the tumor, the amount ofCA 19-9 in the blood may be reduced compared to previous times. In order to determine a reduction, it is important that the doctor has determined the value ofCA 19-9 in the blood prior to the treatment.
