Jianbo Wang, M.D., Ph.D
Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine
About Dr. Wang
Currently, I hold the position of Associate Professor in the Genitourinary (GU) Medical Oncology Department at the MD Anderson Cancer Center. I primarily serve as attending physician on GU medical oncology inpatient service. The GU medical oncology inpatient service at MD Anderson Cancer Center provides hospital care to established patients from the GU medical Oncology clinic or new patients admitted through the Acute Cancer Care Center (ACCC). The team includes attending physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), and pharmacists. Patients admitted to this service present with acute issues related to underlying GU cancers, urgent treatment needs for newly diagnosed GU cancers, and toxicities from cancer therapies. The service operates at a high capacity, typically handling a daily census averaging in the upper 20s to 30s, with peaks up to 40 patients. My contributions to the inpatient service not only ensure high-quality care for patients and enhance their experience at MD Anderson but also alleviate the workload for my colleagues in the GU department.
In addition to caring for patients in the hospital, I see patients with various GU malignancies (prostate cancer, kidney cancer, bladder cancer) in the clinic to become familiar with overall management approaches. My clinic operates once a week, and I usually see over 20 patients. Besides administering standard therapies based on national guidelines, I actively enroll patients in clinical trials within the GU department and the Phase 1 department.
Beyond my clinical work in the GU department, I volunteer as the GU lead in the multi-disciplinary brain metastasis (mets) clinic at MD Anderson. Brain mets from GU malignancies, such as renal cell carcinoma, are particularly challenging to treat due to the presence of the blood-brain barrier. Treatment options are typically limited to local therapies like surgery and radiation, as the role of systemic treatment in brain mets management remains unclear. Unfortunately, the clinical outcomes for patients with brain mets have been disappointing.
I have been seeing patients in the Brain Mets Clinic since mid-2019. The clinic has remained open even during the pandemic, and I typically see 2-4 new consults in a half-day clinic at least once a month. It is expected that patient volume will increase further. Besides treating patients’ brain metastases with radiation and surgical resection, the Brain Mets Clinic is exploring new approaches to treat this challenging disease, such as new systemic treatment options that can cross the blood-brain barrier to treat intracranial disease.
In addition to clinical work, I am also interested in conducting clinical trials to explore new systemic treatment options, especially for patients with brain metastases who have unmet medical needs. By utilizing the tissue collected during these trials, my intention is to conduct correlative studies aiming to identify predictive biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets in patients with brain metastases originating from GU cancer and other malignancies. My prior research experience has equipped me with the skills necessary to design and execute impactful studies.
In my previous research at Washington University in St. Louis, I made significant discoveries regarding Trop-2 as an oncogene and an appealing therapeutic target in colon cancers (Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 2008, first author). Additionally, I established a trop-2 knockout mouse model and demonstrated that the loss of trop-2 promotes carcinogenesis in squamous cell carcinoma (Molecular Cancer Research 2011, first author). The TROP-2 gene is clinically significant due to its role as a therapeutic target in the development of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), such as sacituzumab govitecan, which has been FDA approved for the treatment of metastatic triple negative breast cancer. My previous laboratory research experience has provided me with the knowledge and abilities needed to conduct effective research."
Since joining the Brain Mets Clinic at MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2019, my focus has been on developing clinical trials to explore new systemic therapy options for patients with brain metastases from renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The current data has demonstrated that the combination of one immune-checkpoint agent with other immune-checkpoint inhibitors or angiogenesis agents exhibited superior efficacy over single immune-checkpoint inhibitor and been approved as frontline treatment for metastatic RCC. It would be of high clinical interest to evaluate if check-point inhibitor combinations or combinations of check-point inhibitors and anti-angiogenesis agents would confer improved intra-cranial activity. As the GU Leader in the multi-disciplinary brain mets clinic at MD Anderson. I lead a phase II clinical study to assess the safety and efficacy of cabozantinib in combination with nivolumab/ipilimumab for the treatment of RCC patients with untreated brain metastases. We believe the results from this trial will provide a much improved therapeutic option and potentially change the management practice of patients with RCC brain metastases. Furthermore, correlative studies on the specimens (tumor biopsy, CSF) from patients on this trial will potentially lead to identification and validation of biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets that can further improve diagnosis, treatment, response prediction, and overall management of RCC patients with brain metastases.
My goal is to integrate clinical expertise with innovative research to advance genitourinary medical oncology and enhance patient outcomes. In conclusion, I am to breach clinical practice and research to foster meaningful progress in the field.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Associate Professor, Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Associate Professor, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2002 | Peking Union Medical University, Beijing, CN, Oncology, Ph.D |
| 1999 | Tongji Medical University, Wuhan, CN, Biochemistry, MMS |
| 1994 | Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan, CN, Medicine, MD |
Postgraduate Training
| 2014-2017 | Clinical Fellowship, Hematology/Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas |
| 2011-2014 | Clinical Residency, Internal Medicine, St. Luke's Hospital, Chesterfield, Missouri |
Licenses & Certifications
| 2024 | DEA Department of Justice |
| 2019 | Texas Medical License |
| 2017 | Hematology and Medical Oncology |
| 2014 | American Board of Internal Medicine |
| 2009 | ECFMG Certification |
Experience & Service
Faculty Academic Appointments
Assistant Professor, Genitourinary Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, 2017 - 2025
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Patient Safety Quality Officer, Genitourinary Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, 2023 - Present
Intramural Institutional Committee Activities
Member, Institutional Review Board, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2023 - Present
Extramural Institutional Committee Activities
Member, Penile Cancer Algorithm Working Group, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2024 - Present
Member, Hospital Throughput, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2024 - Present
Member, Spinal Cord Compression in Cancer Patients Algorithm Working Group, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2023 - Present
Member, Brain Mets Algorithm Working Group, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2022 - Present
Honors & Awards
| 2012 | Best Poster Award, St. Luke's Hospital |
| 1998 | Excellent Graduate Student of the Year, Tongji Medical University |
| 1991 - 1994 | Scholarship Recipient, Hubei University of Medicine |
Professional Memberships
Selected Presentations & Talks
National Presentations
- 2020. Characterization of metastatic spinal cord compression from prostate cancer. Conference. Characterization of metastatic spinal cord compression from prostate cancer. San Francisco, CA, US.
- 2009. Trop2 as a target for breast cancer treatment. Conference. Trop2 as a target for breast cancer treatment. Boston, MA, US.
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Wang, J, Johns, AC, Alhalabi, O, Gao, J, Goswami, S, Hahn, AW, Jonasch, E, Campbell, M, Desai, M, Lin, JK, Msaouel, P, Shah, AY, Zurita-Saavedra, A, Tannir, NM. A phase II trial of nivolumab, ipilimumab and cabozantinib in patients with brain metastases from renal cell carcinoma. Journal of Clinical Oncology 44:492, 2026. e-Pub 2026.
- Dizman, N, Tidwell, R, Sheth, RA, Alhalabi, O, Corn, P, Campbell, M, Goswami, S, Johns, AC, Jonasch, E, Lin, JK, Shah, AY, Wang, J, Zurita-Saavedra, A, Gao, J, Tannir, NM, Hahn, AW, Msaouel, P. Ivonescimab in metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (mccRCC) after immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. Journal of Clinical Oncology 44:TPS573-TPS573, 2026. e-Pub 2026.
- Nieto Y, Ward JF, Hofstetter W, Rice D, Karam JA, Pisters L, Vauthey JN, Shah A, Lin JK, Johns AC, Araujo J, Tu SM, Wang J, Li J, Abudayyeh A, Thall PF, Bassett R, Barnett M, Gulbis A, Shigle TL, Ramdial J, Popat U, Qazilbash M, Jones RB, Andersson BS, Shpall EJ, Sheikh I, Pagliaro L, Campbell MT. HIGH-DOSE CHEMOTHERAPY FOR MULTIPLY OR POOR-RISK RELAPSED GERM-CELL TUMORS. Clinical Cancer Research 32(2):300-311, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 40853903.
- Gajagowni S, Wang E, Wang J, Campbell MT, Siddiqui BA. Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) Following Immune Checkpoint Therapy (ICT). Case Rep Oncol Med 2025:5582848, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 39816730.
- Xiang JJ, Campbell MT, Tu SM, Araujo J, Nieto Y, Lin JK, Xiao L, Shah AY, Wang J. Doxorubicin, Paclitaxel, and Cisplatin (ATP) for Relapsed/Refractory Germ Cell Tumors. Clin Genitourin Cancer 22(6):102242, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 39532049.
- Moussa, MJ, Chen, AH, Grana, AK, Gao, J, Shah, AY, Corn, P, Tannir, NM, Goswami, S, Wang, J, Araujo, JC, Kamat, A, Navai, N, Pettaway, CA, Adibi, M, Czerniak, BA, Guo, CC, Siefker-Radtke, AO, Campbell, M, Alhalabi, O. Clinical outcomes of frontline GemFLP in advanced urachal and non-urachal adenocarcinomas of the urinary tract. Journal of Clinical Oncology 42(4), 2024. e-Pub 2024.
- Pizuorno Machado A, Shatila M, Liu C, Wang J, Altan M, Zhang HC, Thomas A, Wang Y. Immune-related adverse events after immune checkpoint inhibitor exposure in adult cancer patients with pre-existing autoimmune diseases. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 149(9):6341-6350, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 36752908.
- Hollander B, Khurana S, Jacob JS, Altan M, Wang J, Zhao D, Varatharajalu K, Alasadi M, Thomas AS, Wang Y. Mesalamine and cholestyramine for immune checkpoint inhibitor-mediated diarrhea and colitis. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 149(7):3637-3648, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 35972690.
- Mathew A, Shatila M, Lai Z, Tan D, Oliva ICG, Wang J, Alhalabi O, Zhang HC, Thomas A, Wang Y. Characteristics of appendicitis after immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy among cancer patients. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 149(8):4591-4599, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 36163559.
- Tang C, Sherry AD, Haymaker C, Bathala T, Liu S, Fellman B, Cohen L, Aparicio A, Zurita AJ, Reuben A, Marmonti E, Chun SG, Reddy JP, Ghia A, McGuire S, Efstathiou E, Wang J, Wang J, Pilie P, Kovitz C, Du W, Simiele SJ, Kumar R, Borghero Y, Shi Z, Chapin B, Gomez D, Wistuba I, Corn PG. Addition of Metastasis-Directed Therapy to Intermittent Hormone Therapy for Oligometastatic Prostate Cancer: The EXTEND Phase 2 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Oncol 9(6):825-834, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37022702.
- Vasavada S, Panneerselvam K, Amin R, Varatharajalu K, Okhuysen PC, Oliva ICG, Wang J, Grivas P, Thomas AS, Wang Y. Clostridioides difficile infection in cancer patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors. Ann Gastroenterol 35(4):393-399, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35784625.
- Gao J, Navai N, Alhalabi O, Siefker-Radtke A, Campbell M, Slack Tidwell R, Guo CC, Kamat AM, Matin S, Araujo JC, Shah AY, Msaouel P, Corn P, Wang J, Papadopoulos JN, Yadav SS, Blando JM, Duan F, Basu S, Liu W, Shen Y, Zhang Y, Macaluso MD, Wang Y, Chen J, Zhang J, Futreal A, Dinney C, Allison JP, Goswami A, Sharma P. Neoadjuvant combination PD-L1 plus CTLA-4 blockade in patients with cisplatin2 ineligible operable high-risk urothelial carcinoma. Nature Medicine, 2021. e-Pub 2021.
- Wang J, Tawbi HA. Emergent immunotherapy approaches for brain metastases. Neurooncol Adv 3(Suppl 5):V43-V51, 2021. e-Pub 2021.
- Alhalabi O, Hasanov E, Wilson NR, Araujo J, Wang J, Campbell MT, Goswami S, Shah AY, Gao J, Msaouel P, Tannir NM. Outcomes of patients with intermediate-risk or poor-risk metastatic renal cell carcinoma who received their first cycle of nivolumab and ipilimumab in the hospital because of symptomatic disease: The MD Anderson Cancer Center experience. Int J Cancer 149(2):387-393, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33739450.
- Zou, F, Abu-Sbeih, H, Ma, W, Peng, Y, Qiao, W, Wang, J, Shah, AY, Glitza, IC, Piha-Paul, SA, Thompson, JA, Zhang, HC, Thomas, AS, Wang, Y. Association of chronic immune-mediated diarrhea and colitis with favorable cancer response. JNCCN Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network 19(6):700-708, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33316767.
- Spetsieris N, Boukovala M, Weldon JA, Tsikkinis A, Hoang A, Aparicio A, Tu SM, Araujo JC, Zurita AJ, Corn PG, Pagliaro L, Kim J, Wang J, Subudhi SK, Tannir NM, Logothetis CJ, Troncoso P, Wang X, Wen S, Efstathiou E. A Phase 2 Trial of Abiraterone Followed by Randomization to Addition of Dasatinib or Sunitinib in Men With Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer. Clin Genitourin Cancer 19(1):22-31.e5, 2021. e-Pub 2021.
- Gao J, Navai N, Alhalabi O, Siefker-Radtke A, Campbell MT, Tidwell RS, Guo CC, Kamat AM, Matin SF, Araujo JC, Shah AY, Msaouel P, Corn P, Wang J, Papadopoulos JN, Yadav SS, Blando JM, Duan F, Basu S, Liu W, Shen Y, Zhang Y, Macaluso MD, Wang Y, Chen J, Zhang J, Futreal A, Dinney C, Allison JP, Goswami S, Sharma P. Neoadjuvant PD-L1 plus CTLA-4 blockade in patients with cisplatin-ineligible operable high-risk urothelial carcinoma. Nat Med 26(12):1845-1851, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 33046869.
- Zou F, Abu-Sbeih H, Ma W, Peng Y, Qiao W, Wang J, Shah AY, Glitza Oliva IC, Piha-Paul SA, Thompson JA, Zhang HC, Thomas AS, Wang Y. Association of Chronic Immune-Mediated Diarrhea and Colitis With Favorable Cancer Response. J Natl Compr Canc Netw 19(6):700-708, 2020. e-Pub 2020.
- Wang J, Kuperman DI. A blood-making lung mass. Ann Hematol 92(11):1559-60, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23525685.
- Wang J, Zhang K, Grabowska D, Li A, Dong Y, Day R, Humphrey P, Lewis J, Kladney RD, Arbeit JM, Weber JD, Chung CH, Michel LS. Loss of Trop2 promotes carcinogenesis and features of epithelial to mesenchymal transition in squamous cell carcinoma. Mol Cancer Res 9(12):1686-95, 2011. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 21970857.
- Saporita AJ, Chang HC, Winkeler CL, Apicelli AJ, Kladney RD, Wang J, Townsend RR, Michel LS, Weber JD. RNA helicase DDX5 is a p53-independent target of ARF that participates in ribosome biogenesis. Cancer Res 71(21):6708-17, 2011. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 21937682.
- Dong Y, Li A, Wang J, Weber JD, Michel LS. Synthetic lethality through combined Notch-epidermal growth factor receptor pathway inhibition in basal-like breast cancer. Cancer Res 70(13):5465-74, 2010. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20570903.
- Wang J, Day R, Dong Y, Weintraub SJ, Michel L. Identification of Trop-2 as an oncogene and an attractive therapeutic target in colon cancers. Mol Cancer Ther 7(2):280-5, 2008. e-Pub 2008. PMID: 18281513.
- Yueying W, Jianbo W, Hailin L, Huaijing T, Liping G, Shih-Hsin L. ECRG1, a novel esophageal gene, cloned and identified from human esophagus and its inhibition effect on tumors. Carcinogenesis 29(1):157-60, 2008. e-Pub 2008. PMID: 17971341.
- Zhao N, Wang J, Cui Y, Guo L, Lu SH. Induction of G1 cell cycle arrest and P15INK4b expression by ECRG1 through interaction with Miz-1. J Cell Biochem 92(1):65-76, 2004. e-Pub 2004. PMID: 15095404.
- Cui YP, Wang JB, Zhang XY, Bi MX, Guo LP, Lu SH. Using yeast two-hybrid system to identify ECRG2 associated proteins and their possible interactions with ECRG2 gene. World J Gastroenterol 9(9):1892-6, 2003. e-Pub 2003. PMID: 12970870.
- Cui Y, Wang J, Zhang X, Lang R, Bi M, Guo L, Lu SH. ECRG2, a novel candidate of tumor suppressor gene in the esophageal carcinoma, interacts directly with metallothionein 2A and links to apoptosis. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 302(4):904-15, 2003. e-Pub 2003. PMID: 12646258.
- Wang J, Fan Y, Guo L, Lu S. [Search for interacting proteins of esophageal cancer related gene-1 encoded protein through the yeast two-hybrid system]. Zhonghua Zhong Liu Za Zhi 24(3):219-21, 2002. e-Pub 2002. PMID: 12515610.
- Wang J, Wang C, Liu Z, Tian J, Qu S. The modification on lipoprotein labeling method with DiI. Chinese Journal of Arteriosclerosis 10(1):65-68, 2002. e-Pub 2002.
- Liu R, QU S, Wang J, Guo J, Zhou H. IL-6 and B7-1 costimulation cooperate in the induction of T lymphocytes activation in vitro. Chinese Journal of Immunology 16(2):96-98, 2000. e-Pub 2000.
- Shen Q, Wang J, Liu Z, Deng Y, Feng Z. Cloning of Chinese very low density lipoprotein receptor gene and its expression in CHO cells. Chinese Journal of Arteriosclerosis 8(3):189-192, 2000. e-Pub 2000.
- Liu R, Wang J, Qu S, Zhou H. Antitumor effect of mouse B16 melanoma cells transfected with mB7-1. Chinese Journal of Clinical Oncology 26(12):924-927, 1999. e-Pub 1999.
- Qu S, Liu R, Wang Y, Wang J. Preliminary study on the cooperation of IL-6 and mB7-1 in the induction of effective anti-tumor immunity in vitro. Journal of Tongji Medical University 19(2):86-89, 1999. e-Pub 1999.
- Qu S, Liu R, Wang J, Wang Y. Experimental study on the anti-tumor effect of mouse B7-1 gene. Journal of Tongji Medical University 19(1):10-14, 1999. e-Pub 1999.
Abstracts
- Alhalabi O, Wilson N, Ajufo H, Lehner M, Hasanov E, Campbell M, Shah A, Wang J, Jonasch E, Araujo J, b|Wang J, Gao J, Goswami S, Msaouel P, Tannir N. Safety and differential clinical activity of nivolumab plus ipilimumab (nivo-ipi) in patients (pts) with non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC). Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2022. e-Pub 2022.
- Alhalabi O, Wilson N, Xiao L, Naval N, Kamat A, Shah A, Araujo J, b|Wang J, Goswami S, Gao J, Wang J, Guo C, Czerniak B, Corn P, Logothetis C, Dinney C, Campbell M, Tannir N, Siefker-Radtke A. Factors associated with improved outcomes in surgically resectable small cell urothelial cancer (SCUC). Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2022. e-Pub 2022.
- Wang J. Characterization of metastatic spinal cord compression from prostate cancer. Journal of Clinical Oncology 38:6_suppl, 248-248, 2020. e-Pub 2020.
- Ma C, Wang J, Lo J, Naughton M, Nagaraj G, Bazzell N, Ellis M. A phase study of BKM120 and fulvestrant in postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor positive metastatic breast cancer. Cancer Research:3;73 (24 Suppl), 2013. e-Pub 2013.
Book Chapters
- Catinis, C, Mittal, N, Sarihan, MC, Aleem, A, Wang, J, Campbell, M, Wang, Y. Rectal Ulcer and Perianal Fistula in a Cancer Patient on Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy, 159-165, 2025.
- Wang J, Hayes TG. Early Stage Prostate Cancer: Controversies in Management. In: Handbook of Prostate Cancer and Other GU Malignancies, 2017.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified July 22, 2026