Tumor Marker Testing in Busan: A Guide for International Patients
Which Tumor Markers Are Tested
Panels commonly include AFP (liver), CEA (colorectal), CA19-9 (pancreatic/biliary), PSA (prostate), and CA-125 (ovarian) — combined by sex and age tier.
What Marker Results Can and Can't Tell You
Markers can be elevated without cancer and normal with it — which is why Korean screening treats them as one input among several, never a standalone answer. Elevated results trigger targeted imaging, not panic.
Combining Markers With Imaging
The panel's value is triangulation: marker + ultrasound + endoscopy findings together are far more informative than any alone — the structural logic of the Korean screening model.
Markers Inside a Surgeon-Designed Panel
The IFC's screening pathway was designed under colorectal cancer surgery leadership, and it shows in how markers are handled: CEA is interpreted against the colonoscopy result, AFP against the liver ultrasound, PSA against age and history — with follow-up imaging on the same floors when a number needs chasing.
Common Questions
Which markers are included?
Commonly AFP, CEA, CA19-9, PSA, and CA-125 by sex and tier — confirm your tier's panel at booking.
A marker came back elevated — is that cancer?
Not by itself — elevations are common and often benign; the physician review pairs the number with imaging before any conclusion.
Are markers ever skipped?
Lower tiers carry fewer markers; the Gold tier and above include the standard panel.
How fast do results return?
With the main laboratory results — reviewed same-day under the center's one-stop model.