ASCO 2024 upper GI cancer highlights

Dr Samuel J. Klempner is a GI medical oncologist with research and clinical focus on esophagogastric cancers and cancer genomics. Dr Klempner completed his residency in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, followed by a combined hematology-oncology fellowship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School. While at Harvard, Dr Klempner studied the mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapies in tumor cells in the lab of Dr Lewis Cantley, PhD. Dr Klempner is board certified in medical oncology, hematology, and internal medicine. Prior to joining The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute Dr Klempner served as an Assistant Clinical Professor in the division of Hematology-Oncology at the University of California Irvine. Dr Klempner’s research interests include the intersection of genomics and immunotherapies, oncogene-driven tumors, acquired resistance, and experimental therapeutics. Dr Klempner is involved in professional societies including the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO).

Elizabeth (Lizzy) Smyth is a consultant in gastrointestinal oncology. Dr Smyth commenced her oncology training in Dublin, Ireland. In 2009 she was awarded a fellowship from the Irish Society of Medical Oncology to train at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Centre, New York. Following this, she worked at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London from 2011-2018. Her research focus is on clinical trials and translational research in gastroesophageal cancer, and she has worked on trial design and management of national and international trials. She is a member of the European Society for Medical Oncology GI Faculty and leads the EORTC GI Trials Group Gastric Cancer Taskforce. Dr Smyth is committed to furthering national and international collaboration in GI trials research.