Guest guest Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 Hi - I don't think I've introduced myself before; I'm primarily a " lurker " on this board... My dad was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer (w/ mets to liver and lymph nodes) on 5/18/05. He was admitted to the hospital immediately and had a large tumor removed and part of his colon 3 days later and a permanent colostomy put in. He started chemo w/ Xeloda about 3 weeks later. After the first round (2 weeks on, 2 weeks off), he went back to the oncologist for a check-up. Although he looks really good - maintaining his weight & had only some nausea and fatigue with the chemo - his CEA level was still up. The onc. said that was only part of the evaluation. Since he looked so good, she said that was more important and ordered him 3 more rounds of Xeloda. Over the weekend, he finished his 2nd course of the Xeloda. He handled this course much better than the first - virtually no nausea & much less fatigue. He's eating much better this time - almost all the same foods he did before the surgery. And, he's been more active - taking trips to the store & swimming in their pool. Here's my question - how important are the CEA levels? Dad goes back in next week for another blood test evaluation, and I'm worried about the impact on his spirits if the CEA levels are still increasing. His spirits have been much better (thank you Zoloft!) the last few weeks, and if the CEA isn't that important, I don't want him to sink into depression (which he's prone to.) Thanks, Caroline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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