John D Shaughnessy Jr., PhD

Research Program: Cancer Biology Faculty Rank: Professor of Medicine Campus: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College: College of Medicine Department: Medicine

Cancer Research Interest

• Disease Site Focus: Multiple Myeloma
• Research Focus Area: Diagnosis/ Prognosis, Informatics, Treatment, Detection
• Type of Research: Basic, Translational, Clinical
• Research Keywords: Multiomic, Diagnosis, Prognosis, Bone Disease, Plasma Cell Dyscrasias, Developmental Therapeutics, Informatics
• Research Interest Statement: I have been conducting research into the cause of multiple myeloma for 30 years. First at the NCI then here at UAMS. We have made seminal discoveries into the molecular basis of myeloma-induced bone disease. Using multi-omicron analysis of the genetics and gene expression changes in a large cohort of patient samples from myeloma patients undergoing uniform treatment at UAMS, we have been able to discover that myeloma is not one disease but seven different forms of disease with unique gene expression signatures and clinical characteristics. We have also used this internationally recognized clinic-genomic archive containing nearly one million samples to identify the mechanisms of and ability to identify de-novo high-risk myeloma which is present in close to 20% of newly diagnosed myeloma that to date is resistant to all current conventional therapies. We are also interested in understanding the mechanisms that lead the pre-malignant plasma cell dyscrasia monoclonal gammopathy of undermined significance (MGUS) to convert to myeloma and to intercept the disease in its earliest stage. Conversely, we are also interested in the factors that are associated with MGUS that never convert to myeloma.

Contact Information

• Email Address: JDSHAUGHNESSY@UAMS.EDU
• Profiles Research Networking Software: View Profile

Active Grants

• NIH/Nat. Cancer Institute – 1U54CA272691
  “U54 - Administrative Core ”
  Co-Investigator
  9/1/2023 – 8/31/2027
• NIH/Nat. Cancer Institute – 1U54CA272691
  “U54 - Bioinformatics Core ”
  Principal Investigator
  9/1/2023 – 8/31/2027

Recent Publications

• Mohan Lal B, Alzubi M, Alrawabdeh J, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Prior Exposure to Belantamab Mafodotin Influences Outcomes with Idecabtagene Vicluecel in Patients with Multiple Myeloma. Blood advances. 2025. PMID: 39938011.
• Qin L, Moreno Rueda LY, Ray U, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Targeting Caseinolytic Mitochondrial Matrix Peptidase, a Novel Contributor to High-risk Behavior, in Multiple Myeloma. Blood. 2025. PMID: 39912779.
• Moreno Rueda LY, Wang H, Akagi K, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Single-cell analysis of neoplastic plasma cells identifies myeloma pathobiology mediators and potential targets. Cell reports. Medicine. 2025:101925. PMID: 39855192. PMCID: PMC11866523.
• Cheng Y, Sun F, Alapat DV, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Multi-omics reveal immune microenvironment alterations in multiple myeloma and its precursor stages. Blood cancer journal. 2024 14(1):194. PMID: 39505839. PMCID: PMC11541562.
• Al Hadidi S, Ababneh O, Schinke C, [et al., including Shaughnessy J Jr]. Second primary malignancies after tandem autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for multiple myeloma. American journal of hematology. 2024. PMID: 39109821.
• Guo W, Strouse C, Mery D, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. A Risk Stratification System in Myeloma Patients with Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation. Cancers. 2024 16(6). PMID: 38539451. PMCID: PMC10969019.
• Li JR, Arsang-Jang S, Cheng Y, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Enhancing prognostic power in multiple myeloma using a plasma cell signature derived from single-cell RNA sequencing. Blood cancer journal. 2024 14(1):38. PMID: 38443358. PMCID: PMC10915134.
• Guo W, Zhan Y, Mery D, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD]. Prognostic value of ferritin in ASCT MM patients: integration with GEP models and ISS series systems. Blood cancer journal. 2024 14(1):30. PMID: 38355688. PMCID: PMC10866867.
• Mao X, Yan W, Mery D, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Development and validation of an individualized and weighted Myeloma Prognostic Score System (MPSS) in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. American journal of hematology. 2024. PMID: 38247315. PMCID: PMC10947864.
• Sun F, Cheng Y, Wanchai V, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Bispecific BCMA/CD24 CAR-T cells control multiple myeloma growth. Nature communications. 2024 15(1):615. PMID: 38242888. PMCID: PMC10798961.
• Patel TH, Bachu R, Shrivastava T, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD]. Psychological Impact in Individuals with Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance and Smoldering Multiple Myeloma. Clinical hematology international. 2024 6(3):54-60. PMID: 39345654. PMCID: PMC11428156.
• Al Hadidi S, Ababneh O, Schinke C, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Three Years Maintenance with VRD in Multiple Myeloma: Results of Total Therapy IIIB with a 15-Year Follow Up. Blood advances. 2023. PMID: 38052037. PMCID: PMC10845028.
• Xu-Monette ZY, Li Y, Snyder T, [et al., including Shaughnessy J]. Tumor-Infiltrating Normal B Cells Revealed by Immunoglobulin Repertoire Clonotype Analysis Are Highly Prognostic and Crucial for Antitumor Immune Responses in DLBCL. Clinical cancer research : an official journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. 2023 29(23):4808-4821. PMID: 37728879. PMCID: PMC10842978.
• Guo W, Zhan A, Mery DE, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Application of R2-ISS risk stratification to patients with multiple myeloma treated with autologous stem cell transplants at UAMS. Blood advances. 2023 7(21):6676-6684. PMID: 37756524. PMCID: PMC10637884.
• Sun F, Cheng Y, Chen JR, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. BCMA- and CST6-specific CAR T cells lyse multiple myeloma cells and suppress murine osteolytic lesions. The Journal of clinical investigation. 2023. PMID: 37883186. PMCID: PMC10760955.
• Cheng Y, Sun F, Alapat DV, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. High NEK2 expression in myeloid progenitors suppresses T cell immunity in multiple myeloma. Cell reports. Medicine. 2023 4(10):101214. PMID: 37794587. PMCID: PMC10591052.
• Fahmawi S, Schinke C, Thanendrarajan S, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Under-representation of black patients with multiple myeloma in studies supporting International Myeloma Working Group guidelines. Journal of cancer policy. 2023 37:100433. PMID: 37468042.
• Sun F, Cheng Y, Ying J, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. A gene signature can predict risk of MGUS progressing to multiple myeloma. Journal of hematology & oncology. 2023 16(1):70. PMID: 37386588. PMCID: PMC10308756.
• Mohan M, Gong Z, Ashby TC, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Concomitant deletion of the short arm (del(1p13.3)) and amplification or gain (1q21) of chromosome 1 by fluorescence in situ hybridization are associated with a poor clinical outcome in multiple myeloma. Cancer. 2023. PMID: 37282609.
• Abu Za'nouneh FJ, Ababneh O, Schinke C, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Variability of definition of high-risk multiple myeloma across phase III clinical trials. EJHaem. 2023 4(2):454-458. PMID: 37206288. PMCID: PMC10188470.
• Mazahreh F, Mazahreh L, Schinke C, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD]. Risk of infections associated with the use of bispecific antibodies in multiple myeloma: a pooled analysis. Blood advances. 2023. PMID: 36857755. PMCID: PMC10331406.
• Al Hadidi S, Dongarwar D, Schinke C, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD]. Racial Differences in Spinal Cord Compression Related Hospitalizations in Patients with Multiple Myeloma. Clinical hematology international. 2023. PMID: 36737587. PMCID: PMC10241736.
• Bloedjes TA, de Wilde G, Khan GH, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD]. AKT supports the metabolic fitness of multiple myeloma cells by restricting FOXO activity. Blood advances. 2022. PMID: 36322819. PMCID: PMC10182179.
• Alqazaqi R, Schinke C, Thanendrarajan S, [et al., including Shaughnessy J Jr]. Geographic and Racial Disparities in Access to Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T Cells and Bispecific Antibodies Trials for Multiple Myeloma. JAMA network open. 2022 5(8):e2228877. PMID: 36018590. PMCID: PMC9419017.
• Gai D, Chen JR, Stewart JP, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. CST6 suppresses osteolytic bone disease in multiple myeloma by blocking osteoclast differentiation. The Journal of clinical investigation. 2022. PMID: 35881476. PMCID: PMC9479617.
• Li C, Xia J, Franqui Machin R, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. TRIP13 modulates protein deubiquitination and accelerates tumor development and progression of B cell malignancies. The Journal of clinical investigation. 2021. PMID: 34061780. PMCID: PMC8279583.
• Schinke CD, Boerma M, Bird JT, [et al., including Shaughnessy J Jr]. PHF19 inhibition as a therapeutic target in multiple myeloma. Current research in translational medicine. 2021 69(3):103290. PMID: 33894670. PMCID: PMC8316274.
• Wendlandt EB, Darbro B, Xu H, [et al., including Shaughnessy JD Jr]. Genetic Analysis of Multiple Myeloma Identifies Cytogenetic Alterations Implicated in Disease Complexity and Progression. Cancers. 2021 13(3). PMID: 33572851. PMCID: PMC7866300.