← Kelly Casteel, MD

Esophageal & GEJ Cancer Treatment Timeline

An interactive, clinician-facing chronicle of the trials that built modern esophageal and gastroesophageal-junction care — from the cytotoxic 5‑FU/platinum backbone and neoadjuvant chemoradiation through HER2-targeted and anti-angiogenic therapy to the PD‑1 checkpoint era and the newest HER2 antibody-drug conjugate and Claudin 18.2 agents. The disease splits first by histology — squamous cell vs adenocarcinoma — so toggle the squamous thread to see which agents track that axis. Click any drug to trace its Phase 1→3→approval lineage; click a trial for arms, endpoints, results, and FDA/EMA milestones.

Data verified against ClinicalTrials.gov & primary literature · last reviewed Jul 2026

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Drug class

Trial phase

Ph 1 Ph 2 Ph 3

Status

Approved Investigational Withdrawn / failed

Activity

Ongoing only

NCCN

In NCCN v3.2026 Category 1 only

Reference

Solid outline = approved Dashed outline = investigational Dashed rose = withdrawn / failed Pulsing dot = ongoing trial ✓badge = FDA / EMA approved NCCN category badge (1 / 2A / biomarker) Ambient curve = rising survival as approvals accrue

Scroll horizontally → · click a drug node to open its trial lineage

NCCN preferred regimens by histology & line of therapy

Derived from NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology — Esophageal and Esophagogastric Junction Cancers, Version 3.2026

Preference tiers (Preferred / Other Recommended / Useful in certain circumstances) and Categories of Evidence (1, 2A) are summarised for reference and attributed to NCCN. This is not a reproduction of the guideline; consult the authoritative, current version at nccn.org. Regimens are grouped by histology (squamous cell vs adenocarcinoma) and line of therapy. Click a drug chip to jump to that agent’s trial lineage; biomarker-restricted options (HER2, PD-L1, CLDN18.2) are noted inline.