December 31st, 2021
A small spot of hope this week: Maria's CA 19-9 levels are down. What does that mean?
CA 19-9 stands for carbohydrate antigen, and is a type of antigen produced by pancreatic cancer cells. Elevated CA 19-9 levels usually indicate the presence of pancreatic cancer, which is otherwise really difficult to detect.
People without cancer usually have CA 19-9 levels of less than 37 (units per mL). Prior to beginning chemo, Maria's CA 19-9 value was over 15,000! But this week, lab results showed that her CA 19-9 levels are now just over 6,000.
Obviously, that's still much higher than normal, but it's a significant drop from before. This could be an indication that the chemo treatments are working! (You can learn more about what CA 19-9 means from PanCAN.)
Maria's recent lab work also shows her platelets and white blood cell counts have dropped (also typical of chemo). They will need to test again before her chemo session next week to see if they can continue or if they should delay treatment until her white blood cell count increases.
We're taking things one day at a time. Thank you again for your continued thoughts and prayers, and best wishes for everyone's health in the new year.
—Lisa