Introduction and Context
Cancers of the oesophagus and stomach (oesophagogastric cancers) remain a global cause of substantial morbidity and mortality despite recent therapeutic advances. In high‑income countries, multimodality care—combining surgery, systemic therapy and radiotherapy—has improved outcomes for some patients, but survival remains poor for many, and treatment causes major functional and nutritional consequences. Research investment must therefore be aligned to questions that will most improve outcomes that matter to patients: survival, function, symptom control and quality of life.
To ensure research addresses those priorities, Jones and colleagues led a UK and Ireland partnership exercise—reported in Gut (2025)—to gather, verify and prioritise research uncertainties for oesophagogastric cancers using inputs from patients, carers and a wide range of healthcare professionals (HCPs). The exercise generated a robust, patient‑weighted shortlist intended to guide funders, policy makers and investigators toward impactful studies.
