Jianjun Gao, MD, PhD
Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Associate Professor, Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2006 | University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, KS, USA, MD, Medicine |
| 1997 | University of Kansas, Kansas City, KS, USA, PHD, Molecular Immunology |
| 1993 | Fudan University, China, USA, MS Candidate, Genetics |
| 1990 | Nanjing Normal University, China, USA, BS, Biology |
Postgraduate Training
| 2010-2013 | Clinical Fellowship, Medical Oncology, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
| 2006-2010 | Clinical Residency, Internal Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI |
Board Certifications
| 2014 | American Board of Internal Medicine-Medical Oncology |
| 2011 | American Board of Internal Medicine |
Honors & Awards
| 2018 | Andrew Sabin Family Foundation Fellowship |
| 2018 | Faculty Scholar Award, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2018 | Doris Duke Clinical Scientist Development Award |
| 2018 | CG CAHPS Top 1% Physician Award, Clinician and Group Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems |
| 2017 | Physician Scientist Award, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2017 | MD Anderson Khalifa Physician Scientist Award |
| 2016 | First Annual APRN Fellows’ Choice Award for Outstanding Faculty Preceptor, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2016 | High Impact Clinical Research Support Program Award, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2015 | Damon Runyon Clinical Investigator Award Finalist |
| 2014 | American Society of Clinical Oncology Career Development Award (returned due to concurrent NIH/NCI K-12 award) |
| 2013 | Stand Up To Cancer and the Cancer Research Institute Young Investigator Award |
| 2013 | The William L. Pippin Jr. Fellowship Award in Genitourinary Cancer Research |
| 2013 | MD Anderson Cancer Center Bladder Cancer SPORE Career Development Award, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2013 | The Paul Calabresi Clinical Oncology (NCI K-12) Award, NIH/NCI |
| 2013 | M D Anderson Division of Cancer Medicine Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program Achievement in Basic Science Research Award |
| 2012 | Texas Society of Clinical Oncology Award of Excellence |
| 2012 | National Institute of Health Loan Repayment Award |
| 2012 | The Lupe C. Garcia Fellowship Award in Cancer Research |
| 2012 | American Association of Cancer Research Highly Ranked Abstract Award |
| 2012 | American Association of Cancer Research Aflac Scholar-in-Training Award |
| 2012 | American Society of Clinical Oncology Young Investigator Award |
| 2011 | American Society of Clinical Oncology Merit Award |
| 2011 | MD Anderson Cancer Center NIH T32 Trainee Award |
| 2006 | KUMC The Person Who Best Exemplifies the Attributes You Want in a Physician Award |
| 2006 | Helmuth Sprinz Award, University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC) |
| 2004 | KUMC Doctor's Doctor Award |
| 2003 | KUMC Most Valuable Player of the Class Award |
| 2003 | National Institute of Health New Investigator Award |
| 2002 | University of Kansas Cultural Diversity Scholarship |
| 2001 | American Heart Association Beginning-Grant-in-Aid |
| 1997 | Kansas Health Foundation Fellowship Award |
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Choi k, Abu-Sbeih H, Samdani R, Gonzalez GN, Raju GS, Richards DM, Gao J, Subudhi S, Stroehlein J, Wang Y. Can Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Induce Microscopic Colitis or a Brand New Entity?. Inflamm Bowel Dis, 2019. PMID: 30169584.
- Reuben A, Gittelman R, Gao J, Zhang J, Yusko EC, Wu CJ, Emerson R, Zhang J, Tipton C, Li J, Quek K, Gopalakrishnan V, Chen R, Vence LM, Cascone T, Vignali M, Fujimoto J, Rodriguez-Canales J, Parra ER, Little LD, Gumbs C, Forget MA, Federico L, Haymaker C, Behrens C, Benzeno S, Bernatchez C, Sepesi B, Gibbons DL, Wargo JA, William WN, Swisher S, Heymach JV, Robins H, Lee JJ, Sharma P, Allison JP, Futreal PA, Wistuba II, Zhang J. TCR Repertoire Intratumor Heterogeneity in Localized Lung Adenocarcinomas: an Association with Predicted Neoantigen Heterogeneity and Postsurgical Recurrence. Cancer Discov 7(10):1088-1097, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28733428.
- Gao J, Ward JF, Pettaway CA, Shi LZ, Subudhi SK, Vence LM, Zhao H, Chen J, Chen H, Efstathiou E, Troncoso P, Allison JP, Logothetis CJ, Wistuba II, Sepulveda MA, Sun J, Wargo J, Blando J, Sharma P. VISTA is an inhibitory immune checkpoint that is increased after ipilimumab therapy in patients with prostate cancer. Nat Med 23(5):551-555, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28346412.
- Biebighauser KC, Gao J, Rao P, Landon G, Pagliaro L, Dinney CPN, Karam J, Navai N. Non-seminomatous germ cell tumor with bone metastasis only at diagnosis: A rare clinical presentation. Asian J Urol 4(2):124-127, 2017. PMID: 29264217.
- Gao J, Shi LZ, Zhao H, Chen J, Xiong L, He Q, Chen T, Roszik J, Bernatchez C, Woodman SE, Chen PL, Hwu P, Allison JP, Futreal A, Wargo JA, Sharma P. Loss of IFN-γ Pathway Genes in Tumor Cells as a Mechanism of Resistance to Anti-CTLA-4 Therapy. Cell 167(2):397-404.e9, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27667683.
- Subudhi SK, Aparicio A, Gao J, Zurita AJ, Araujo JC, Logothetis CJ, Tahir SA, Korivi BR, Slack RS, Vence L, Emerson RO, Yusko E, Vignali M, Robins HS, Sun J, Allison JP, Sharma P. Clonal expansion of CD8 T cells in the systemic circulation precedes development of ipilimumab-induced toxicities. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 113(42):11919-11924, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27698113.
- Kim C, Gao J, Shannon VR, Siefker-Radtke A. Systemic sarcoidosis first manifesting in a tattoo in the setting of immune checkpoint inhibition. BMJ Case Rep 2016, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27797838.
- Shi LZ, Fu T, Guan B, Chen J, Blando JM, Allison JP, Xiong L, Subudhi SK, Gao J, Sharma P. Interdependent IL-7 and IFN-γ signalling in T-cell controls tumour eradication by combined α-CTLA-4+α-PD-1 therapy. Nat Commun 7:12335, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27498556.
- Bilen MA, Subudhi SK, Gao J, Tannir NM, Tu SM, Sharma P. Acute rhabdomyolysis with severe polymyositis following ipilimumab-nivolumab treatment in a cancer patient with elevated anti-striated muscle antibody. J Immunother Cancer 4:36, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27330809.
- Liu XD, Hoang A, Zhou L, Kalra S, Yetil A, Sun M, Ding Z, Zhang X, Bai S, German P, Tamboli P, Rao P, Karam JA, Wood C, Matin S, Zurita A, Bex A, Griffioen AW, Gao J, Sharma P, Tannir N, Sircar K, Jonasch E. Resistance to Antiangiogenic Therapy Is Associated with an Immunosuppressive Tumor Microenvironment in Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma. Cancer Immunol Res 3(9):1017-29, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26014097.
- Malouf GG, Su X, Yao H, Gao J, Xiong L, He Q, Compérat E, Couturier J, Molinié V, Escudier B, Camparo P, Doss DJ, Thompson EJ, Khayat D, Wood CG, Yu W, Teh BT, Weinstein J, Tannir NM. Next-generation sequencing of translocation renal cell carcinoma reveals novel RNA splicing partners and frequent mutations of chromatin-remodeling genes. Clin Cancer Res 20(15):4129-40, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24899691.
- Chen H, Fu T, Suh WK, Tsavachidou D, Wen S, Gao J, Ng Tang D, He Q, Sun J, Sharma P. CD4 cells require ICOS-mediated P13K-signaling to increase T-bet expression in the setting of anti-CTLA therapy. Cancer Immunol Res 2(2):167-76, 2014. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 24778280.
- Gou HF, Li X, Qiu M, Cheng K, Li LH, Dong H, Chen Y, Tang Y, Gao F, Zhao F, Men HT, Ge J, Su JM, Xu F, Bi F, Gao JJ, Liu JY. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-RAS signaling pathway in penile squamous cell carcinoma. PLoS One 8(4):e62175, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23637996.
- Gao JJ, Maricque BB, Morse MD, Huang W, McNeel DG. Identification of autoantibodies in a patient with testicular cancer and concurrent inflammatory bowel disease. J Clin Oncol 28(33):e680-3, 2010. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20805455.
- Gao JJ, Shen J, Kolbert C, Raghavakaimal S, Papasian CJ, Qureshi AA, Vogel SN, Morrison DC, Qureshi N. The proteasome regulates bacterial CpG DNA-induced signaling pathways in murine macrophages. Shock 34(4):390-401, 2010. PMID: 20160661.
- Shen J, Gao JJ, Zhang G, Tan X, Morrison DC, Papasian C, Vogel SN, Qureshi N. Proteasome-mediated regulation of CpG DNA- and peptidoglycan-induced cytokines, inflammatory genes, and mitogen-activated protein kinase activation. Shock 25(6):594-9, 2006. PMID: 16721267.
- Gao JJ, Diesl V, Wittmann T, Morrison DC, Ryan JL, Vogel SN, Follettie MT. Bacterial LPS and CpG DNA differentially induce gene expression profiles in mouse macrophages. J Endotoxin Res 9(4):237-43, 2003. PMID: 12935354.
- Gao JJ, Diesl V, Wittmann T, Morrison DC, Ryan JL, Vogel SN, Follettie MT. Regulation of gene expression in mouse macrophages stimulated with bacterial CpG-DNA and lipopolysaccharide. J Leukoc Biol 72(6):1234-45, 2002. PMID: 12488506.
- Chi L, Li Y, Stehno-Bittel L, Gao J, Morrison DC, Stechschulte DJ, Dileepan KN. Interleukin-6 production by endothelial cells via stimulation of protease-activated receptors is amplified by endotoxin and tumor necrosis factor-alpha. J Interferon Cytokine Res 21(4):231-40, 2001. PMID: 11359654.
- Gao JJ, Xue Q, Zuvanich EG, Haghi KR, Morrison DC. Commercial preparations of lipoteichoic acid contain endotoxin that contributes to activation of mouse macrophages in vitro. Infect Immun 69(2):751-7, 2001. PMID: 11159964.
- Gao JJ, Filla MB, Lorsbach RB, Pace JL, Crespo A, Russell SW, Murphy WJ. Prolonged exposure of mouse macrophages to IFN-beta suppresses transcription of the inducible nitric oxide synthase gene: altered availability of transcription factor Stat1alpha. Eur J Immunol 30(6):1551-61, 2000. PMID: 10898490.
- Chu W, Gao J, Murphy WJ, Hunt JS. A candidate interferon-gamma activated site (GAS element) in the HLA-G promoter does not bind nuclear proteins. Hum Immunol 60(11):1113-8, 1999. PMID: 10600009.
- Gao JJ, Zuvanich EG, Xue Q, Horn DL, Silverstein R, Morrison DC. Cutting edge: bacterial DNA and LPS act in synergy in inducing nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 macrophages. J Immunol 163(8):4095-9, 1999. PMID: 10510342.
- Gao JJ, Filla MB, Fultz MJ, Vogel SN, Russell SW, Murphy WJ. Autocrine/paracrine IFN-alphabeta mediates the lipopolysaccharide-induced activation of transcription factor Stat1alpha in mouse macrophages: pivotal role of Stat1alpha in induction of the inducible nitric oxide synthase gene. J Immunol 161(9):4803-10, 1998. PMID: 9794412.
- Gao J, Morrison DC, Parmely TJ, Russell SW, Murphy WJ. An interferon-gamma-activated site (GAS) is necessary for full expression of the mouse iNOS gene in response to interferon-gamma and lipopolysaccharide. J Biol Chem 272(2):1226-30, 1997. PMID: 8995425.
- Shah AY, Karam JA, Malouf GG, Rao P, Lim ZD, Jonasch E, Xiao L, Gao J, Vaishampayan UN, Heng DY, Plimack ER, Guancial EA, Fung C, Lowas SR, Tamboli P, Sircar K, Matin SF, Kimryn Rathmell W, Wood CG, Tannir NM. Management and outcomes of patients with renal medullary carcinoma: a multicentre collaborative study. BJU Int. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27860149.
Invited Articles
- Alhalabi O, Shah AY, Lemke EA, Gao J. Current and future landscape of immunotherapy in urothelial cancer. Oncology 33(1):11-8, 2019. PMID: 30731013.
- Tabayoyong W, Li R, Gao J, Kamat A. Optimal Timing of Chemotherapy and Surgery in Patients with Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer and Upper Urinary Tract Urothelial Carcinoma. Urol Clin North Am 45(2):155-167, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29650132.
- Tabayoyong W, Gao J. The emerging role of immunotherapy in advanced urothelial cancers. Curr Opin Oncol 30(3):172-180, 2018. PMID: 29553950.
- Shah AY, Gao J, Siefker-Radtke AO. Five new therapies or just one new treatment? A critical look at immune checkpoint inhibition in urothelial cancer. Immunotherapy 9(10):781-784, 2017. PMID: 28877627.
- Campbell MT, Siefker-Radtke AO, Gao J. The state of immune check point inhibition in urothelial carcinoma: current evidence and future areas of exploration. Cancer J 22(2):96-100, 2016. PMID: 27111904.
- Gao J, He Q, Subudhi S, Aparicio A, Zurita-Saavedra A, Lee DH, Jimenez C, Suarez-Almazor M, Sharma P. Review of Immune-Related Adverse Events in Prostate Cancer Patients Treated with Ipilimumab: MD Anderson Experience. Oncogene 34(43):5411-7, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25659583.
- Siefker-Radtke AO, Gao J. Towards effective adjuvant treatment for urothelial cancer. Lancet Oncol 16(1):9-10, 2015. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25498220.
- Jonasch E, Gao J, Rathmell WK. Renal cell carcinoma. BMJ 349(10):g4797, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25385470.
- Gao J, Bernatchez C, Sharma P, Radvanyi LG, Hwu P. Advances in the development of cancer immunotherapies. Trends Immunol 34(2):90-8, 2013. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 23031830.
- Lizée G, Overwijk WW, Radvanyi L, Gao J, Sharma P, Hwu P. Harnessing the power of the immune system to target cancer. Annu Rev Med 64:71-90, 2013. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 23092383.
- Lei MG, Gao JJ, Morrison DC, Qureshi N. Pathogenesis of sepsis: current concepts and emerging therapies. Mo Med 100(5):524-9, 2003. PMID: 14601445.
Abstracts
- Gao J, Ward JF, Pettaway CA, Subudhi SK, Vence LM, Zhao H, Chen J, Chen H, Efstathiou E, Troncoso P, Allison JP, Logothetis C, Wistuba II, Wargo JA, Blando JM, Sepulveda MA, Sun JJ, Sharma P. Investigation of mechanisms of resistance to ipilimumab therapy with a pre-surgical trial in patients with high-risk, localized prostate cancer. J Clin Oncol, 2017.
- Subudhi SK, Aparicio A, Troncoso P, Zhang Jianhua, Gumbs C, Wu CJ, Gao J, Vence LM, Blando JM, Corn PG, Araujo JC, Zurita AJ, Prokhorova IN, Van Alstine M, Logothetis C, Futreal A, Allison JP, Sharma P. Linking tumor mutational load to clinical responses to ipilimumab (IPI) in men with advanced prostate cancer (PCa). J Clin Oncol 35(15_suppl):5065-5065, 2017.
- Gao J, Karam JA, Wood CG, Matin S, Ahrar K, Jonasch E, Tannir N, Campbell M, Ng C, Slack R, Rao P, Allison JP, Blando JM, Vence LM, Basu S, Zhao H, Chen T, Chen H, Sharma P. Clinical activity, immune and molecular correlates of nivolumab vs. nivolumab plus bevacizumab vs nivolumab plus ipilimumab in metastatic renal cell carcinoma. AACR Annual Meeting, 2017.
- Shah AY, Gao J, Lemke ES, Campbell MT, Zurita AJ, Wang J, Corn PG, Jonasch E, Sharma P, Tannir NM. Responses to second-line tyrosine kinase inhibitors after first-line immune checkpoint inhibitors in advanced renal cell carcinoma, 2017.
- Subudhi SK, Aparicio A, Gao J, Zurita-Saavedra A, Araujo J, Logothetis CJ, Brinda KR, Allison JP, Vence L, Emerson RO, Yusko E, Vignali M, Robins HS, Sung J, Sharma P. Exploratory biomarkers that predict for clinical outcomes in a Phase II trial with ipilimumab plus finite androgen deprivation therapy for metastatic non-castrate prostate cancer. Cancer Res 76(14_suppl):1402, 2016.
- Gao J, Malouf GG, Su X, Yao H, Rao P, He R, Xiong L, Karam JA, Matin SF, Mouawad R, Comperat E, Khayat D, Wood CG, Tannir N. Molecular profiling of renal medullary carcinoma to reveal frequent alterations in chromatin remodeling genes and to identify EZH2 as a relevant therapeutic target. J Clin Oncol 34(15_suppl):4566-4566, 2016.
- Mmeje CO, Slade A, Slack R, Navai N, Gao J, Siefker-Radtke AO, Kamat AM, Dinner CPN, Shah JB. The utility of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in determining survival outcomes in patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radical cystectomy for high-risk bladder cancer. J Clin Oncol 34(2_suppl):419-419, 2016.
- Campbell MT, McConkey DJ, Matin SF, Kamat AM, Dinner CPN, Wang J, Gao JJ, Siefker-Radtke AO. The hotspot mutational landscape of upper tract and bladder urothelial cancers and correlation to survival. J Clin Oncol 34(2_suppl):466-466, 2016.
- Shah AY, Karam JA, Malouf GG, Rao P, Lim ZD, Jonasch E, Xiao L, Gao J, Vaishampayan UN, Heng DYC, Plimack ER, Guancial EA, Fung C, Lowas SR, Tamboli P, Sircar K, Matin SF, Rathemell K, Wood CG, Tannir NM. Management and outcomes of patients with renal medullary carcinoma (RMC): A collaborative multi-center study of 52 patients. J Clin Oncol 34(15_suppl):e16111-e16111, 2016.
- Gao J, Shi LZ, Xiong L, He Q, Chen J, Shen DY, Sharma P. Expression of IFNgR on tumor cells impact response to anti-CTLA-4. AAI Annual Meeting, 2015.
- Liu X, Hoang A, Zhou L, Kalra S, Yetil A, Sun M, Ding Z, Tamboli P, Rao P, Karam JA, Wood CG, Matin SF, Zurita AJ, Bex A, Griffioen AW, Gao J, Sharma P, Tannir NM, Sircar K, Jonasch E. Association of resistance to antiangiogenic therapy with an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment in metastatic renal cell carcinoma. J Clin Oncol 33(7_suppl):419-419, 2015.
- Mmeje CO, Benson CR, Nogueras-Gonzalez GM, Jayaratna IS, Gao J, Siefker-Radtke AO, Kamat AM, Dinney CP, Navai N, Shay JB. Determining the optimal timing for radical cystectomy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. BJU Int 122(1):89-98, 2015.
- Gao J, Yao H, Su X, Xiong L, Rao P, Sharma P, Karam JA, Wood C, Tannir NM. Molecular characterization of renal medullary carcinoma (RMC). J Clin Oncol 32(15_suppl):4586-4586, 2014.
Book Chapters
- Sharma P, Subudhi S, Peggs K, Goswami S, Gao J, Quezada S, Allison JP. Cancer Immunotherapy. In: Holland-Frei Cancer Medicine. 9th. Wiley Blackwell, 2017.
- Shnyra A, Luchi M, Gao JJ et al. Endotoxin in human disease and its endogenious control. In: Multiple Organ Failure. Springer-Verlag New York Inc: New York, 114-130, 2000.
Grant & Contract Support
| Title: | Investigating IFN signaling as a critical pathway for anti-CTLA-4 therapy mediated anti-tumor responses |
| Funding Source: | American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Research Training in Academic Medical Oncology |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Young Investigator |
| Title: | Targeting the AMP Kinase and Fibronectin Pathways in Renal Medullary Carcinoma |
| Funding Source: | Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Institute for the Personalized Cancer Therapy’s Center for Professional Education and Training |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Phase 1 Randomized Pre-Surgical Study Evaluation Anti-PD1 Antibody vs Anti-PD1 Antibody + Bevacizumab in Patients with Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma who are Eligible for Cytoreductive Nephrectomy |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Targeting MTAP-Deficient Metastatic Bladder Cancer |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Investigation of Mechanisms of Resistance and Toxicity to Immune Checkpoint Therapy in Urothelial Bladder Carcinoma |
| Funding Source: | MD Anderson Cancer Center - Physician Scientist Award |
| Role: | Principal Investigator-MDACC |
| Title: | A phase II trial to evaluate pemetrexed clinical responses in relation to tumor MTAP gene status in patients with previously treated metastatic urothelial bladder carcinoma |
| Funding Source: | MD Anderson Cancer Center - High Impact Clinical Research Support Program Award |
| Role: | Principal Investigator-MDACC |
| Title: | Andrew Sabin Family Foundation Fellows Award |
| Funding Source: | Andrew Sabin Family Foundation |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Doris Duke Charitable Foundation – Clinical Science Development Award |
| Funding Source: | Doris Duke Charitable Foundation |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | SPORE in Genitourinary Cancer - Career Development Program (CDP) |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | CDP Award Leader |
| Title: | AACR-CRA – SU2C Immunology |
| Funding Source: | American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) |
| Role: | Young Investigator |
| Title: | SPORE in Genitourinary Cancers Supplemental Project 3: Targeting FGFR and EFGR in Bladder Cancer |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Program Leader |
| Title: | Flagship: Development of Mechanism-based Combination Therapies for Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer |
| Funding Source: | MD Anderson Cancer Center Prostate Moon Shot Program |
| Role: | Investigator |