The cancer antigen CA19-9 was discovered in 1981.Its high concentration was found in patients with intestinal and pancreatic lesions.
The oncomarker is linked to the blood group protein according to the Lewis system. This means that part of the population of the planet, especially the Caucasian race, does not have an antigen on the erythrocyte membrane. Therefore, CA19-9 they are not detected under any circumstances.
Description and value of the cancer marker CA 19-9
It represents a complex glycoprotein synthesized by the cells of the fetal epithelium in women during pregnancy. In adults, these cells are produced in small amounts.
In the main synthesis occurs cancer cells of the pancreas. Much less often the liver, stomach.
Normally, the oncomarker is secret, bile, seminal fluid. Sometimes an increase in normal performance is observed in benign pathologies in healthy people.
Doctors do not use a method for screening pancreas cancer because specificity and sensitivity are not sufficient for accurate diagnosis.
Indications for research
Analysis due to its high sensitivity is used for early diagnosis of pancreatic tumors.
If cancer is detected, then a study is performed to assess the severity of the disease. When the rapid growth of protein begins, the doctor can talk about the appearance of metastases.
The prerequisites for the application of the method are:
- control of treatment success,
- relapse diagnosis,
- presence of concomitant ailments,
- detection of patients with hepatitis B, cirrhosis.
How do I take a blood test?
Venous blood is taken for examination. The laboratory should come in the morning on an empty stomach.
The last meal should take place no less than 6 hours. A few days before that, you can not drink alcohol, abuse fatty foods, increase physical activity. For a day, give up smoking.
The evaluation of the results is carried out exclusively by a doctor who, in addition to the analysis, has information about the patient. The data of the clinical examination, the history of the disease development are taken into account.
If you increase the indicators, do not panic, because this does not always happen due to cancer cells.
Decoding of the results of the CA 19-9 oncomarker
The results, depending on the features of the clinic, are ready within 2-10 days.
For long-term observation, the decisive factor is not the figure itself, but its changes in dynamics. Oncologists say that the absence of an antigen in the blood does not mean that a person does not have cancer.
Norm
The values from 0 to 30 IU / ml are considered normal. The boundary values are up to 40 IU / ml.
In the earliest stages of pancreatic cancer, indicators can be within normal limits. This means that they have not yet managed to rise.
Their decrease in the treatment process is indicative of the effectiveness of the measures taken.
A slight increase in normal indicates inflammatory processes in the intestine, liver, gall bladder.
Sometimes the cause is pancreatitis, cholangitis, obstruction of the biliary tract. In these cases, the patient is sent for additional diagnosis.
Thus, the normal indices of the CA19-9 oncomarker indicate:
- positive dynamics,
- absence of pathology in the digestive tract,
- of the initial stage of the disease.
Deviation
At elevated elevations, the interpretation depends on the number of antigen units. If the indicators are small, but after additional diagnosis, cancer problems are excluded.
If the number of oncomarker is 100 to 500 IU / L, this indicates:
- pancreatic cancer,
- oncology of the liver, stomach, ovaries,
- colorectal cancer.
If the concentration exceeds 1000 conventional units, the doctor's task is to find out how swelling is operable. In this situation, only 5% of patients can eliminate it surgically.
If the data is below this mark, the success of the operation is increased by 10 times.
Pancreatic cancer occurs in people older than 30 years. Diagnosis of this disease is difficult, and the disease itself is difficult to treat. Therefore, ultrasensitive methods are used to detect oncology.
Antigen testing is not applied at the stage of disease formation, but remains one of the most informative in the evaluation of treatment, for the detection of metastases.