# Yelena Y. Janjigian

Source: https://onco.cc/people/yelena-janjigian/  
OnCo record `yelena-janjigian` (Person). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Led CheckMate 649, which made immunotherapy plus chemotherapy the first-line standard for gastric cancer, and the pembrolizumab-trastuzumab combination in HER2-positive disease.

## Summary

Yelena Y. Janjigian is Chief of the Gastrointestinal Oncology Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She is a gastrointestinal oncologist known for leading CheckMate 649, which made nivolumab plus chemotherapy the first-line standard for gastric cancer, and KEYNOTE-811, which established pembrolizumab with trastuzumab in HER2-positive disease. Her selected papers report first-line nivolumab plus chemotherapy in advanced gastric, gastro-oesophageal junction and oesophageal adenocarcinoma, and the KEYNOTE-811 trial of dual PD-1 and HER2 blockade in HER2-positive gastric cancer. Her research programme focuses on HER2 and immune biomarkers in gastro-oesophageal cancer.

## Fields

- Kind: Person
- Last checked: 2026-09-08
- Role: Chief, Gastrointestinal Oncology Service
- Specialisms: Gastric and oesophageal cancer; HER2-positive GI cancer; Immunotherapy

## Sources

- MSK profile: https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/doctors/yelena-janjigian
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Janjigian%20YY%5BAuthor%5D

## Connected records

- cancers: [Gastric & gastro-oesophageal junction cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/gastric/), [Oesophageal cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/esophageal/)
- targets: [HER2](https://onco.cc/targets/her2/), [PD-1](https://onco.cc/targets/pd1/)
- drugs: [Nivolumab](https://onco.cc/drugs/nivolumab/), [Pembrolizumab](https://onco.cc/drugs/pembrolizumab/), [Trastuzumab](https://onco.cc/drugs/trastuzumab/)
- institutions: [Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center](https://onco.cc/institutions/mskcc/)
- trials: [CheckMate 649](https://onco.cc/trials/checkmate-649/), [KEYNOTE-811](https://onco.cc/trials/keynote-811/)
- key papers: [CheckMate 649: nivolumab plus chemotherapy as first treatment for advanced gastric, gastro-oesophageal junction and oesophageal adenocarcinoma](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-checkmate-649-lancet-2021/)

---
JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/yelena-janjigian.json