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Faculty

Nataliya Uboha

MD, PhD
Associate Professor
University of Wisconsin, Carbone Cancer Center

Nataliya V. Uboha, MD, PhD is a gastrointestinal (GI) medical oncologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health. She practices at the UW Carbone Cancer Center, where she serves as Associate Director of Clinical Research and leads the Early Phase Oncology Therapeutics (EPOT) Program, the institution’s largest and fastest-growing clinical trials program.

Dr. Uboha’s research focuses on the development and conduct of early-phase and biomarker-driven clinical trials for patients with gastroesophageal and pancreatobiliary malignancies. She has extensive experience as a principal investigator on investigator-initiated studies and as an institutional principal investigator for multiple NCI-sponsored and industry-supported trials, with particular expertise in precision oncology, novel targeted therapies, and immunotherapy combinations.

Nationally, Dr. Uboha is an active leader in cooperative group research, serving as Chair of the ECOG-ACRIN Upper GI Task Force and Co-Chair of the NCI Upper GI Task Force, and as an institutional principal investigator for the NCI UM1 ETCTN grant. She also contributes to national clinical practice standards through her involvement in NCCN and ASCO guideline development, helping to translate emerging clinical trial data into evidence-based recommendations for the management of GI malignancies.

2026 Sessions

Neoadjuvant Chemo–IO

This discussion will compare strategies for sequencing immunotherapy in gastroesophageal malignancies, examining emerging clinical trial data, biologic rationale, and practical considerations influencing treatment selection. Faculty will address potential impacts on pathologic response, survival outcomes, and toxicity, as well as provide their expert perspectives on integrating immunotherapy across the perioperative continuum of care.

This discussion will cover the biologic rationale and emerging clinical trial data supporting early integration of immunotherapy to enhance pathologic response and long-term outcomes. Faculty will address patient selection, safety considerations, and implications for surgical management, guiding learners on how neoadjuvant chemo-IO may reshape treatment paradigms in gastroesophageal cancer.

Presenter

Saturday, March 14 10:25–10:45 AM
Room Royal Ballroom 2
Gastrointestinal Cancers
Faculty

Nataliya Uboha

MD, PhD
Associate Professor
University of Wisconsin, Carbone Cancer Center

Nataliya V. Uboha, MD, PhD is a gastrointestinal (GI) medical oncologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health. She practices at the UW Carbone Cancer Center, where she serves as Associate Director of Clinical Research and leads the Early Phase Oncology Therapeutics (EPOT) Program, the institution’s largest and fastest-growing clinical trials program.

Dr. Uboha’s research focuses on the development and conduct of early-phase and biomarker-driven clinical trials for patients with gastroesophageal and pancreatobiliary malignancies. She has extensive experience as a principal investigator on investigator-initiated studies and as an institutional principal investigator for multiple NCI-sponsored and industry-supported trials, with particular expertise in precision oncology, novel targeted therapies, and immunotherapy combinations.

Nationally, Dr. Uboha is an active leader in cooperative group research, serving as Chair of the ECOG-ACRIN Upper GI Task Force and Co-Chair of the NCI Upper GI Task Force, and as an institutional principal investigator for the NCI UM1 ETCTN grant. She also contributes to national clinical practice standards through her involvement in NCCN and ASCO guideline development, helping to translate emerging clinical trial data into evidence-based recommendations for the management of GI malignancies.
General Session

Optimizing Immunotherapy Sequencing in Gastroesophageal Malignancies: Neoadjuvant Chemo–IO vs Perioperative Chemo/RT Followed by Adjuvant Anti–PD-1

This discussion will compare strategies for sequencing immunotherapy in gastroesophageal malignancies, examining emerging clinical trial data, biologic rationale, and practical...

  • Moderator
    • Cathy Eng, MD, FACP, FASCO
    • Yelena Janjigian, MD
  • Presenter
    • Samuel Klempner, MD
    • Nataliya Uboha, MD, PhD
Gastrointestinal Cancers

Neoadjuvant Chemo–IO

This discussion will compare strategies for sequencing immunotherapy in gastroesophageal malignancies, examining emerging clinical trial data, biologic rationale, and practical considerations influencing treatment selection. Faculty will address potential impacts on pathologic response, survival outcomes, and toxicity, as well as provide their expert perspectives on integrating immunotherapy across the perioperative continuum of care.

This discussion will cover the biologic rationale and emerging clinical trial data supporting early integration of immunotherapy to enhance pathologic response and long-term outcomes. Faculty will address patient selection, safety considerations, and implications for surgical management, guiding learners on how neoadjuvant chemo-IO may reshape treatment paradigms in gastroesophageal cancer.

Presenter

Saturday, March 14 10:25–10:45 AM
Room Royal Ballroom 2
Gastrointestinal Cancers
Faculty

Nataliya Uboha

MD, PhD
Associate Professor
University of Wisconsin, Carbone Cancer Center

Nataliya V. Uboha, MD, PhD is a gastrointestinal (GI) medical oncologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health. She practices at the UW Carbone Cancer Center, where she serves as Associate Director of Clinical Research and leads the Early Phase Oncology Therapeutics (EPOT) Program, the institution’s largest and fastest-growing clinical trials program.

Dr. Uboha’s research focuses on the development and conduct of early-phase and biomarker-driven clinical trials for patients with gastroesophageal and pancreatobiliary malignancies. She has extensive experience as a principal investigator on investigator-initiated studies and as an institutional principal investigator for multiple NCI-sponsored and industry-supported trials, with particular expertise in precision oncology, novel targeted therapies, and immunotherapy combinations.

Nationally, Dr. Uboha is an active leader in cooperative group research, serving as Chair of the ECOG-ACRIN Upper GI Task Force and Co-Chair of the NCI Upper GI Task Force, and as an institutional principal investigator for the NCI UM1 ETCTN grant. She also contributes to national clinical practice standards through her involvement in NCCN and ASCO guideline development, helping to translate emerging clinical trial data into evidence-based recommendations for the management of GI malignancies.

Perioperative Chemo/RT Followed by Adjuvant Anti–PD-1

This discussion will compare strategies for sequencing immunotherapy in gastroesophageal malignancies, examining emerging clinical trial data, biologic rationale, and practical considerations influencing treatment selection. Faculty will address potential impacts on pathologic response, survival outcomes, and toxicity, as well as provide their expert perspectives on integrating immunotherapy across the perioperative continuum of care.

Faculty will review clinical trial evidence supporting the use of perioperative chemotherapy or chemoradiation followed by adjuvant anti-PD-1 therapy, including effects on recurrence risk and survival outcomes. The discussion will address timing of immunotherapy initiation, toxicity management, and patient populations most likely to benefit. Participants will gain insight on integrating adjuvant immunotherapy into established perioperative treatment frameworks.

Presenter

Saturday, March 14 10:45–11:05 AM
Room Royal Ballroom 2
Gastrointestinal Cancers
Faculty

Samuel Klempner

MD
Associate Professor
Mass General Cancer Center

Dr. Klempner is a Associate Professor at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School and leads the gastric and esophageal program. His clinical and translational research is centered on cancer genomics, acquired resistance to targeted therapies and the intersection of genomics and immune mediated therapies to identify novel therapeutic approaches and biomarkers in gastroesophageal cancers. He serves on the NRG non-colorectal committee, the NCI esophagogastric task force, and the NCCN guideline committees for gastric and esophageal cancers. His work is supported by Stand Up 2 Cancer, NCI/NIH, AACR, and he currently serves as the AGA Research Foundation’s Gastric Cancer Foundation Ben Feinstein Memorial Research Scholar Award in Gastric Cancer.
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