CEA, do you know what that stands for? Carcinoembryonic Antigen or in other words, a blood marker that we all have. “CEA assay is to be used as an aid in the prognosis and management of cancer patients in whom changing concentrations of CEA are observed” Life Labs Toronto Ontario.
So I need to go on a rant for a second because in my opinion this is as good as it gets for a beginning blood marker or base line that everyone should have done. You see we all have this CEA marker. When you get the blood test done the range is generally 0.0 – 5.0 and like your glucose or cholesterol number the higher the marker or number, the closer you are to having an issue with cancer. Just like the higher your glucose number the closer you are to having an issue with diabetes and the higher your cholesterol number or numbers the closer you are to having an issue with cholesterol. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this out. I am not done ranting just yet. I know that the CEA marker is not a perfect marker. In fact, in some cases a person can have cancer and this marker is still in the normal range but my point is, what if they had this blood test done years ago and had a base line established. Then having this blood marker done on a yearly basis, just like glucose or cholesterol, maybe they could have seen the number getting higher. With that said, if they could see the number going higher they would have had a choice to investigate and do some prevention long before the cancer became a big issue in the body.
Now I know some people are thinking, but it costs money. Yes it does, $35.00 if you do not have cancer and $0.00 if you have cancer. Here is the catch. You need your doctor’s requisition to have this blood test done. As well your doctor has to sign another form stating you do, or do not have cancer and are willing to pay the fee, or you do not have to pay the fee. Without this second piece of paper signed by your doctor you cannot get the test done even if you have a requisition.
I realize this CEA is not a perfect marker but it is something. If statistics are stating cancer will increase and especially with the population aging doesn’t it make sense to put in place some measures to allow people to take control of their own health and wellness. If your CEA marker was starting to increase would you make some changes in your life that maybe could prevent cancer? I think but don’t know for sure, that a lot of people would make changes in their lives if some early warning signs were staring them in the face, black and white on a piece of paper from a blood test.
The sad thing is, many of my patients have family physicians who will not allow them to get the test done. Yes, even when the patient states they will pay for the test.
How do we fix the problem? Well, in my opinion, we first and foremost need to remember we pay taxes and our taxes pay for the health care system, which include the doctor’s salary. Secondly, in Ontario bullying is a crime.
Diane Elms Homeopath, D.H.M.H.S., CCI, CCII, Specializing in Drugless Cancer Care, 2006 Iridologist of the Year, if you have any health related questions contact diane@choicesforhealthandharmony.com or 905 768 0848.