Cancer of the esophagus often has a poor outcome since many patients have advanced disease when they are diagnosed. The average survival rate after five years has increased from 4% in the 1970s to around 14% currently.~Surgery to remove the tumor or treatment with radiotherapy alone has led to disappointing results for patients. Chemotherapy has some activity in patients with advanced disease, although responses are usually short. New strategies are trying to combine these three treatment approaches to improve survival for these patients.~This study will test the combination of cetuximab and bevacizumab in patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer. This is a group of patients with usually poor outcomes from treatment with surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy alone. Scientifically, this study will help assess the value in combining these two different types of drug.
The purpose of this study is to test the drug bevacizumab in combination with cetuximab. Because this combination has not been tested in cancer patients before, results will be analyzed to see what effects the combination of bevacizumab with cetuximab has on esophageal cancer.