The CEA refers to Carcinoembryonic Antigen. Elevated levels of CEA antigenicity are encountered in the cancer cases of benign and malignant stages. In the case of benign mediums, the amount of CEA antigenicity does not usually go beyond 10 ng/ ml, while the normal levels of CEA antigenicity remain around 2.5 and 5 mg/ ml. If these amounts rise higher than 2.5 mg/ ml, it is considered that this isn’t normal, and the association with a cancer diagnosis is accordingly done.

The same amount of CEA however, can be found at cigarette smokers or patients with benign neoplasm, or at patients that suffer from inflammatory diseases such as colitis, pancreatitis, liver disease, Chron’s disease, or pulmonary infections. All in all, these raised levels of CEA are not usually met only in the case of cancer diseases, but they are rather a signal of malignancy at very high levels (> 20 mg/ ml). Also, the CEA levels need to be evaluated before a diagnosis concerning cancer is established, because they directly influenced the analysis results underwent by each patient.



For example, each medical center needs to establish its own CEA levels. If the usual level for this medical center is 2.5 mg/ ml (the recommended level), then the upper values are considered abnormal and need further evaluation. If in some cases this limit is surpassed by a 5 mg/ml amount of CEA for only 4 % of the patients, obviously the patients suspected as having a benign disease will be lesser.



Regarding to gynaecological malignances, the CEA levels is not considered to be a very important aspect to be evaluated. However, it is taken more into consideration only in some cancer types. The patients with ovarian cancer are those who usually have to undergo a CEA level analysis. The carcinoembryonic antigen placed in the plasma, and cyst fluid from patients having ovarian cystadenocarcinoma, are the elements to betray immunologic cancer.



The higher CEA levels indicated malignancy. Also, the evaluation of CEA levels will help doctors to diagnose whether or not there is the possibility that an ovarian cancer to be recurrent or not. This can be established with the comparison of CEA level analysis prior to therapy, and after that.

The CEA levels are also very important and valuable for helping doctors establish a correct diagnosis of recurrence for patients who were treated with radiotherapy. Because of this type of therapy, the radiation fibrosis would harden the detection of tumours, if not totally impede it.

The CEA level analysis proves to be very helpful in disease marking concerning usual epithelial malignant tumors, whether these tumors refer to gynecologic malignancies or to patients who suffer from some benign diseases. In this way, the CEA levels would represent a very helpful way to determine and diagnose some tumors.

Since the discovery of CEA, patients suspected by cancer are initially tested for the CEA levels in the blood, in order to determine whether or not the antigen is present in the malignant lesion, before other tests will be done. Other information about CEA and the gynecologic cancer you can find on these two sites.