Esophageal Cancer

Investigators reported positive topline findings from the phase 3 RATIONALE 306 trial, assessing the first-line combination of tislelizumab and chemotherapy in previously untreated unresectable, locally advanced, recurrent, or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The CheckMate 648 trial found that using a combination of nivolumab and chemotherapy or nivolumab plus ipilimumab vs chemotherapy alone improved survival in advanced esophageal squamous-cell carcinoma.

Treatment with nivolumab/ipilimumab and nivolumab/chemotherapy has demonstrated efficacy in unresectable advanced, recurrent, or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, with results from the CheckMate-648 trial leading to the acceptance of the regimens’ applications by the FDA.

Pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy compared with the placebo plus chemotherapy demonstrated an improvement in overall survival and progression-free survival for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Data presented at 2021 ESMO show that nivolumab plus chemotherapy improves survival outcomes in certain patients with frontline gastrointestinal cancers, but not nivolumab plus ipilimumab.

Results from the phase 3 JUPITER06 trial demonstrated positive outcomes with toripalimab plus platinum-based chemotherapy in patients with treatment-naïve advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Results of 2 studies presented at 2021 ESMO demonstrate superior efficacy of sintilimab plus chemotherapy versus chemotherapy alone in certain gastrointestinal cancers.

Preliminary data from the phase 1b GO30103 study indicated that the combination of tiragolumab plus atezolizumab may have promise in patients with heavily pretreated metastatic esophageal cancer.

Survival outcomes improved when nivolumab was added to either ipilimumab or chemotherapy versus chemotherapy alone in advanced/metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Data from the Journal of the American College of Surgeons suggest patients 70 years or older with esophageal or esophagogastric junction cancers should be evaluated for optimal curative therapy.

The phase 3 RATIONALE 302 trial demonstrated that compared to chemotherapy, tislelizumab showed a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival in the intention-to-treat population of patients with advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Data presented at the 2021 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium found that health-related quality of life was steady and similar over the course of 18 weeks for patients receiving chemotherapy with or without pembrolizumab for esophageal cancer.

In addition to a concerning trend of increased rates of esophageal adenocarcinoma noted over the last 4 decades, this study also found that the proportion of those with advanced disease at presentation continues to rise for patients younger than age 50.

Researchers look at cost estimates stratified by stage, histology, and level of treatment.

Pembrolizumab showed promise in the second-line setting for patients with metastatic esophageal cancer and high PD-L1 expression.

A large pooled analysis of individuals with advanced esophageal cancer showed men and women have different side effects to chemotherapy.

A new study adds to evidence examining whether neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy plus surgery improves survival vs surgery alone in locally advanced ESCC.

As part of our coverage of the 2018 GI Cancers Symposium, we discussed the role of locoregional therapies for patients with metastatic esophageal and gastric cancers.

First-line ramucirumab in combination with chemotherapy significantly improved progression-free survival in patients with metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma, according to results of the RAINFALL trial.

Patients assigned to robot-assisted minimally invasive thoraco-laparoscopic esophagectomy had fewer overall, surgery-related, and cardiopulmonary complications compared with open transthoracic esophagectomy, according to the results of the ROBOT trial.

Treatment with the anti–PD-1 antibody pembrolizumab resulted in durable antitumor activity with manageable side effects in patients with heavily pretreated, PD-L1–positive advanced esophageal carcinoma, according to phase IB results of the KEYNOTE-028 study.

Treatment with adjuvant chemotherapy improved the overall survival of locally advanced gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma in patients treated with preoperative chemoradiotherapy and resection, according to the results of an analysis of the National Cancer Database.

The use of hybrid minimally invasive esophagectomy reduced postoperative morbidity in patients with esophageal cancers, according to the results of the MIRO trial.

Use of the EGFR inhibitor cetuximab with chemoradiation did not improve survival in patients with esophageal carcinoma compared with chemoradiation alone, according to the results of the phase III RTOG 0436 trial.

Nurse practitioners play a central role in helping patients with esophageal cancer understand and manage their disease and treatment complications.

A novel calculator can more easily identify which esophageal adenocarcinoma patients derive an overall survival benefit from neoadjuvant chemoradiation to help guide treatment choices.

Overweight individuals in early adulthood who gained additional weight to become obese later in life are at an increased risk for esophageal and gastric cardia adenocarcinomas.

Using PET scans during induction chemotherapy for esophageal cancer, researchers were able to assess patient response to treatment and adjust their therapy, leading to an improved rate of pathologic complete response prior to surgery.

Lymph node status after undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy and resection of esophagogastric cancer was the only independent predictor of survival.

Results of a new Swedish study have shown that a surgeon needed to perform at least 15 esophagectomies in cancer patients in order to achieve stable survival results in the first months after the operation.