Really good news! Janet’s CA125 taken Thur, Jan 19 was 116!! This is way down from the 304 measured Dec 1.
Some of you have worried that because the Nov 8th CA125 was 624, yet the next CA125 taken on Dec 1st was 304, that the 2nd test was in error. But the CA125 from Dec 27th and processed in Houston, finally came back as 376, so if one test was wrong, I’d guess that it was the 624. Some variation from lab to lab is said to be common.
BUT, her CA125 taken Thur, Jan 19 was 116!! Good by any measure.
If that is confusing, you are not alone. Perhaps I can help. Or perhaps I will put you to sleep.
One of the most popular ways to measure success with cancer treatments is the CA125. You can Google that for more detail.
To add to the confusion, there are more than 7 main test methods and it appears that at least 2, perhaps 3 or more, methods have been used to measure Janet’s CA125. And even two different labs using “the same method” may get different numbers.
While a bigger CA125 is worse, smaller is good, the different methods are like Fahrenheit and Centigrade, miles and kilometers, etc. but converting from one to another, is often confusing. (If you know a good way to convert or to offer any help us to better understand this, PLEASE help us to learn more.) At the moment, for example, we believe that 376 from one method might be “better than” 304 measured by another method.
So, the best by far, is to use ONE test method, in the same lab, every time. The CA125 taken on Dec 1st was 304, and was the lab that the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) uses. That is the same lab as the CA125 taken Thur, Jan 19.
So, the next several CA125 numbers will be from the SCCA lab (actually the University of Washington Lab.) So, it will hopefully be a tiny bit less confusing for a couple of months.
Thanks for the Prayers, Good Vibes, Well Wishes, etc. They are very helpful.
Dave & Janet (less Curly as the new chemo is attacking her hair. Small potatoes if she gets cured.)
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