carcino embryonic antigen test

CEA  short for Carcinoembryonic Antigen, is a glycoprotein by the cells of the gastrointestinal tract during foetus development. It is found on the surface of certain cells . CEA is formed in the gastrointestinal tissue during pregnancy, and stops before child birth and that’s why CEA is found in extremely low levels in the blood of healthy adults. However, elevated CEA levels are common in heavy smokers and people suffering from certain types of cancer, and as such Carcinoembryonic Antigen is used as a tumour marker in clinical tests. 

A CEA blood test is essentially a blood test that is used in the diagnosis and management of certain types of cancer. The CEA blood test assesses the amount of Carcinoembryonic Antigen in the blood. The CEA blood test is especially used in cancer of the large intestine and rectum like, colorectal cancer, cancer of the gastrointestinal tract, etc. 

The CEA test is prescribed by a doctor, if the person displays the symptoms of cancer. The CEA test is also used to monitor the cancer treatment. It also helps in screening for the resurgence of cancer. Not all cancers produce CEA and the one that produce CEA includes;

• Colorectal or colon cancer
• Medullary thyroid cancer
• Liver Cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Cancer of the gastrointestinal tract
• Lung cancer
• Breast Cancer

The CEA normal range is either less than or equal to 3 nanograms per millilitre (ng/mL). Anything above 3 ng/mL is indicative of elevated CEA level. This could be due to several other reasons apart from cancer like;

• Infection
• Cirrhosis
• Chronic Smoking
• Inflammatory bowel disease

Even heavy smokers have elevated CEA levels, yet it is less than 5 ng/ml. A CEA level higher than 20 ng/ml is extremely high and is in all probability a a sign of cancer. 

CEA Blood test  does not prove to very efficient in screening for hidden cancers, because tumours in the early stages do not cause significant elevations of the blood, also many tumours don’t even cause elevation of the blood levels.

Since there is variability in the CEA blood test results obtained from different pathological labs and as such the test should be repeated in the same pathological lab if monitoring a patient with cancer. 

Like any other blood test the CEA blood test is quite safe to use. The side effects if any are quite mild and vanish in a day’s time. The common side effects of CEA Blood Test includes;

• Soreness at the puncture site
• Slight pain and tenderness
• Dizziness in rare cases
• Excessive bleeding, this is also very rare and usually happens with people on blood thinning medications.

The CEA Blood Test cost is quite variable and differ from one city to another. Nevertheless, the average CEA Blood Test cost hovers in the 500 to 1500 INR range. Many online healthcare providers provide discount that can help in bringing down the CEA Blood Test cost.

We offer fully certified and highly reliable pathological lab tests at the comfort of a patient home, to offer people economically priced premium healthcare service. We do offer CEA blood test besides other pathological lab tests. So all you need to do is just connect with us either through our website or give us a call and our trained phlebotomist will be in no time at your door step to collect the blood sample. Besides that after complete testing we also provide the CEA blood test results online to you.

So if you are feeling under the weather and not feeling up to travelling, and still need to get CEA Blood tests done then just call us and be witness to an excellent at -home healthcare service.