Gastroenterology news.

The open-label phase 1b/2 HERBOT trial evaluated first-line trastuzumab, nivolumab, gemcitabine and cisplatin in 40 participants with HER2-positive advanced biliary tract cancer. Objective response was 55%, and median progression-free survival was 10.6 months; comparative efficacy remains unestablished.

An observational biopsy study compared 10 patients with enterocolitis after ciltacabtagene autoleucel, seven CAR-T-treated controls without enterocolitis and 26 healthy volunteers. Findings linked enterocolitis to mucosal immune depletion and inflammatory remodeling; two affected patients improved after upadacitinib, providing preliminary support for further study.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of 24 studies found rare inflammatory bowel disease events among patients receiving IL-17 inhibitors for hidradenitis suppurativa. Across 10 randomized trials, new-onset IBD occurred in 0.23% of treated patients versus none receiving placebo through week 16, without a statistically significant difference.

The randomized, open-label phase 2 ASPEN-06 trial evaluated adding evorpacept to trastuzumab, ramucirumab and paclitaxel in 127 patients with pretreated HER2-positive advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer. Response-rate differences exceeded prespecified thresholds, but comparisons against a historical benchmark did not meet the required statistical criterion.

A randomized phase 2b trial involving 101 patients evaluated VCN-01 plus chemotherapy as first-line treatment for metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Overall survival was not significantly improved in the intent-to-treat population, although progression-free survival favored the combination and investigators reported meeting the survival endpoint in the full analysis set.

A US national cohort study using the United Network for Organ Sharing database reported hepatitis B vaccination in 59.9% of liver transplant recipients. Vaccination rates varied by region and other clinical and demographic factors; the supplied abstract did not report sample size.

A phase 3 randomized trial enrolled 218 patients with resectable esophageal or esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma; 202 underwent surgery. Robotic esophagectomy yielded more lymph nodes than conventional minimally invasive surgery, but postoperative complication rates were similar and 1-year survival did not differ.

A retrospective cohort study of 660 patients compared enucleation with pancreatoduodenectomy for benign or low-grade pancreatic head tumors. Enucleation was associated with more clinically relevant pancreatic fistulas but fewer major complications, shorter hospitalization, and better long-term quality of life.

A mechanistic mouse study examined how colon-derived CD4+ intraepithelial lymphocytes change after leaving the intestinal epithelium. The findings suggest that extraintestinal environments shape their activation state, offering a potential cellular mechanism for the gut–joint axis in spondyloarthritis.

A multinational retrospective study of 18,326 adults with biopsy-confirmed MASLD found less advanced fibrosis in lean patients but no independent association between lean status and mortality or clinical events. Advanced fibrosis was associated with poorer outcomes, while liver stiffness measurement showed good diagnostic accuracy in lean patients.

An Annals of Surgery review evaluates robotic-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy using the IDEAL framework. It reports fewer complications and better patient-reported outcomes than open surgery in comparative trials, alongside registry benchmarks from 5,567 cases, but no demonstrated long-term survival difference.

An observational UNOS database study of 7,398 liver transplant recipients with hepatocellular carcinoma found complete pathologic response in 29.3%. Response was associated with better five-year survival, and rates were higher after yttrium-90 treatment or ablation than after transarterial chemoembolization.