CA15.3 in Gandhinagar

CA15.3 is a glycoprotein marker that is raised in breast cancer and a few cases of carcinomas of the ovary, colon, pancreas, lung, and non-malignant conditions. This test is done to monitor patients of breast cancer, to know treatment effectiveness in patients undergoing cancer treatment, and to monitor the relapse or metastasis status (spread to other parts of the body). 

This test is advised only to monitor cancer progression or response to treatment and not as a screening test because, at the initial stage of cancer, the CA15.3 level does not rise significantly. Their levels are highest when breast cancer has spread to other parts of the body. An increase in values in patients treated for breast cancer may indicate recurrent disease and require additional tests or procedures for work-up

Patients are advised to do follow-up testing preferably through the same laboratory as different assays can give different result values.