Dr. Nataliya Uboha 

Dr. Nataliya Uboha sat down to discuss the early warning signs of esophageal cancer, as well as important key takeaways for those with the disease.

Understanding Esophageal Cancer: Early Signs, Risks and Key Insights

April serves as Esophageal Cancer Awareness Month, and has since 2009, according to the Esophageal Cancer Action Network. Esophageal cancer forms in the lining of the esophagus, and according to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 22,370 people living in the United States in 2024 were diagnosed with the disease, the five-year survival rate for esophageal cancer is about 22%.

In an interview with CURE, Dr. Nataliya Uboha sat down to discuss the early warning signs of esophageal cancer, as well as important key takeaways for those with the disease. In the discussion, she explained that there are two main types of esophageal cancer: squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. Globally, squamous cell carcinoma is more prevalent and is strongly linked to smoking. In the United States, adenocarcinoma is more common and is associated with risk factors such as obesity, chronic heartburn, and Barrett’s esophagus.

Uboha is a medical oncologist at UW Health, as well as an associate professor and researcher in the Department of Medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health

So, one of the most common presenting symptoms of patients with esophageal cancer is dysphagia, which is difficulty swallowing. It is not infrequent that patients initially consult their primary care providers with seemingly common symptoms such as heartburn and are treated with antacid medications. However, these symptoms ultimately progress and do not respond to treatment, leading patients to present with weight loss and an inability to swallow, especially solid food.

This ultimately results in a workup with endoscopy, which is how the diagnosis is frequently made. First of all, there are two main types of esophageal cancer: squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. Worldwide, squamous cell carcinoma is much more common, though it is less so in the United States. Squamous cell carcinoma is linked to smoking, so decreasing or ceasing smoking could lead to a reduction in this type of cancer. However, adenocarcinoma, which is the more frequent type in the United States is on the rise. It is thought to be related to obesity and chronic heartburn. Barrett's esophagus is a known risk factor, but in many patients, we cannot clearly identify the specific risk factor that predisposed them to developing this disease.

Transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

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Videos

Krazati plus Erbitux is well tolerated in KRAS G12C-mutant metastatic colorectal cancer, with manageable side effects and less immune suppression.

Expert Explains Safety of Krazati Regimen For Treating Colorectal Cancer

Treatment with Krazati (adagrasib) plus Erbitux (cetuximab) demonstrated meaningful efficacy in heavily pretreated patients with KRAS G12C–mutant unresectable or metastatic colorectal cancer, according to phase 1/2 KRYSTAL-1 trial data presented at the 2025 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.

Dr. Nataliya Uboha is a medical oncologist at UW Health, as well as an associate professor and researcher in the Department of Medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, and shared her insights on the trial in an interview with CURE.

Overall response rate: the percentage of patients who have a complete or partial response to a treatment.

Disease control rate: the percentage of patients who have a complete, partial or stable response to a cancer treatment.

At a median follow-up of 20.4 months, the overall response rate was 34% by blinded independent central review and 43% by investigator assessment. Disease control rates were 85% and 86%, respectively.

In the interview, Uboha sat down to discuss the KRYSTAL-1 study and highlighted what makes Krazati combined with Erbitux safe when compared to other treatment regimens such as Vectibix.

This a very important question, because when we give treatments to our patients, even if the treatment is very active, if it has a lot of side effects, it is hard to deliver these treatments, or harder for patients to tolerate. The good news is that this regimen is pretty well tolerated. We are seeing some gastrointestinal side effects, in particular nausea, so some patients will need to take anti-nausea medications before taking Krazati [adagrasib].

We've seen a little bit of diarrhea as well with the anti-EGFR drugs that are already approved for colorectal cancer. Notably, Erbitux [cetuximab], Vectibix [panitumumab] are notorious for causing rashes, but we’ve not seen as much of a rash with these drugs when we combine them with Krazati [adagrasib] in the study, but this is something else to look for. In contrast to chemotherapy, these agents do not cause significant suppression in the immune system, so that's the differentiating side effect between this combination and chemotherapy.

For more news on cancer updates, research and education, don’t forget to 

subscribe to CURE®’s newsletters here.

Dr. Nataliya Uboha explained the benefit of treatment with Krazati combined with Erbitux in KRAS G12C–mutant metastatic colorectal cancer.

Krazati and Erbitux Combo Benefits KRAS G12C+ Metastatic Colorectal Cancer 

Among patients with heavily pretreated patients with KRAS G12C–mutant unresectable or metastatic colorectal cancer, treatment with Krazati (adagrasib) to Erbitux (cetuximab) continued to show meaningful efficacy, according to data from the phase 1/2 KRYSTAL-1 trial, Dr. Nataliya Uboha explained.

At the 2025 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, Uboha and others shared that at a median follow-up of 20.4 months, the overall response rate was 34% by blinded independent central review and 43% by investigator assessment. Meanwhile, disease control rates were 85% and 86%, respectively.

Uboha is a medical oncologist at UW Health, as well as an associate professor and researcher in the Department of Medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. In an interview with CURE, she sat down to discuss the KRYSTAL-1 study which evaluated patients with KRAS G12C-mutated metastatic colorectal cancer and highlighted what makes Krazati combined with Erbitux a potential treatment option for these patients.

We are seeing a very good signal of activity with these two drugs in patients with colorectal cancer with this mutation. Initially Krazati was developed primarily for patients with lung cancer; however, we see mutations in the KRAS gene with much more frequently in lung cancer. Subsequently, we were studying Krazati in patients with gastrointestinal cancers, in particular colorectal cancer. We have found out that when we combine this drug with an anti-EGFR drug, we see much better efficacy, and much better activity. 

What we have learned from the KRYSTAL-1 trial is that patients with colorectal cancer who have had chemotherapy in the past and whose cancer continue to grow and as well as carry this mutation have a good chance of responding to this treatment. This is a treatment that does not include chemotherapy, so it is relatively well tolerated, and it is quite active in patients who have tumors with this particular mutation.

Dr. Nataliya Uboha

Understanding Esophageal Cancer: Early Signs, Risks and Key Insights

Expert Explains Safety of Krazati Regimen For Treating Colorectal Cancer

Krazati and Erbitux Combo Benefits KRAS G12C+ Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

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