sd79
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Posts:4
Hello everyone,
I've been visiting here a lot lately and found lots of information but now really need to ask about blood tests.
I couldn't find a lot about it.
to sum up, my friend underwent pneumonectomy less than five months ago (it was a recurrence).
all that we now for the moment is that blood tests would show "more cancer".
waiting for appointments is very stressfull and I must admit I am a lost since I read several times that blood markers are not useful to detect a recurrence or a progression of the cancer.
thanks for reading this.
sd.
Forums
Reply # - May 29, 2017, 07:37 AM
Hi sd,
Hi sd,
Welcome to GRACE. I'm sorry to hear of your friend's recurrence, and I hope that no remaining cancer will be seen after the recent surgery.
It's good to hear that you have found some helpful information here, and you are correct when you say that serum tumor markers usually are not a reliable method to determine recurrence or progression of lung cancer, although they are helpful in other types of cancer. For lung cancer, the best that might be said is that if a marker is rising, that might be reason to re-scan sooner than planned.
It is also possible that when your friend's doctors mention blood tests they are referring to a liquid biopsy. This is a relatively new procedure which can detect the presence of circulating tumor cells in the bloodstream. At this point, it is mostly used to test for genetic mutations in the cancer cells, but most oncologists would not rely on such a biopsy, by itself, to judge whether lung cancer has recurred or progressed. The technology may mature to the point where this becomes the standard of care, but we're not there yet.
You can learn more about liquid biopsies and serum tumor markers in the podcasts collected here: http://cancergrace.org/lung/category/lung-cancer/core-concepts/liquid-b…
We all understand the stress of waiting for test results and doctor appointments, so we are sending best wishes for good follow-up results for your friend for a long time to come.
JimC
Forum moderator
Reply # - May 30, 2017, 12:25 AM
Hello,
Hello,
first of all, thank you very much for this answer.
we are now waiting to know if doctors thinks a new surgery is needed for a stomach resection and also for the remaining lung.
S.