Page Updated September 28, 2024

Jun Zhang, MD, PhD

Page Written by

Terri Heimann Oppenheimer

Page Edited by Patient Advocate

Dave Foster

Fact Checked

Dr. Jun Zhang is a medical oncologist, physician, and scientist at KU Medical Center of the University of Kansas in Kansas City. He is passionate about both patient care and research, working to carry scientific discoveries to the bedsides of patients diagnosed with lung cancer, malignant pleural mesothelioma, and other thoracic malignancies.

Dr. Zhang serves as both co-Director of the Lung Cancer Program and Associate Director of the Early Phase Program at the University of Kansas Comprehensive Cancer Center. In these roles, he works collaboratively with other members of the Thoracic Oncology team to improve patient care, outcomes, and quality of life.

Education and Career

Dr. Zhang earned his medical degree from the Xiang-Ya School of Medicine of the Central South University in China. He earned a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from Louisiana State University and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Harvard Medical School and the University of California at San Francisco. He completed a fellowship in Hematology and Oncology fellowship at Emory University School of Medicine.[1]

Professional Memberships

Dr. Zhang is a member of several professional and academic medical associations, including:[1]

• American Association for Cancer Research
• American Society for Clinical Oncology
• European Society for Medical Oncology
• International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer
• Royal Society of Medicine
• Chinese American Hematologist and Oncologist Network

Research

Dr. Zhang’s research interests encompass multiple broad areas, including the role of microbiota in the oncogenesis, immune modulation, and immunotherapy of lung cancer; resistant mechanisms in targeted therapies for non-small cell lung cancer harboring driver mutations; and the development of innovative interventional and translational trials for various thoracic malignancies.

He has authored over 100 publications, including articles in highly respected medical journals including Cancer Research, Clinical Cancer Research, Journal of Thoracic Oncology, Molecular Cancer, Annals of Oncology, JAMA Oncology, Cancer Cell, and New England Journal of Medicine.

Current Research and Grants[1]

• A Multi-Center Phase II Study of Combining Cabozantinib and Atezolizumab as the 1st Line Therapy for PD-L1 Negative Advanced/Metastatic NSCLC (Cabatexo-1) Clinical Trials.gov NCT 05859217, Exelixis and Genentech/Roch: Investigator- Initiated Study, PI
• Using Ex Vivo Tumoroids to Predict Immunotherapy Response in NSCLC (TUMORIN), Nilogen Oncosystems: Investigator-Initiated Study, PI
• ESR-19-20274: Using Microbiome to Predict Durvalumab Toxicity in Post-CCRT NSCLC Patients (Microdurva; NCT04680377), AstraZeneca Externally Sponsored Research: Investigator Initiated Study, PI
• Microbiome in immunotherapy naïve NSCLC patients receiving PD-1/L1 blockade (MIP_NSCLC). ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04636775, KUCC Pilot Grant for Cancer Research, PI
• Part 2 (NSCLC). A study of DSP107 alone and in combination with atezolizumab for patients with advanced solid tumors. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05537987, Innocare Pharm, PI
• A Phase 2 Study of VLS-101 in Patients with Solid Tumors (VLS-101-0003: NCT03833180), VelosBio (now part of Merck), PI
• A Phase 2 Trial of Combination Therapies with Adagrasib in Patients with Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer with KRAS G12C Mutation (KRYSTAL-17), Mirati Therapeutics Inc, Site-PI

Publications[1]

• Jänne PA, Riely GJ, Gadgeel SM, Heist RS, Ou SI, Pacheco JM, Johnson ML, Sabari JK, Leventakos K, Yau E, Bazhenova L, Negrao MV, Pennell NA, Zhang J, Anderes K, Der-Torossian H, Kheoh T, Velastegui K, Yan X, Christensen JG, Chao RC, Spira AI. 2022. Adagrasib in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Harboring a KRAS^G12C Mutation. The New England Journal of Medicine 2022 Jul 14, 387 (2), 120-131. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35658005/
• Roller JF, Veeramachaneni NK, Zhang J. 2022. Exploring the Evolving Scope of Neoadjuvant Immunotherapy in NSCLC. Cancers (Basel) 2022 Jan 31, 14 (3), 741. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35159008/
• Chau J, Yadav M, Liu B, Furqan M, Dai Q, Shahi S, Gupta A, Mercer KN, Eastman E, Abu-Hejleh T, Chan C, Weiner G, Cherwin C, Lee ST, Zhong C, Mangalam A, Zhang J. 2021. Prospective correlation between the patient microbiome with response to and development of immune-mediated adverse effects to immunotherapy in lung cancer. BMC Cancer 2021 Jul 13, 21 (1), 808. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34256732/
• Huang C, Li M, Liu B, Zhu H, Dia Q, Fan X, Mehta K, Huang C, Neupane P, Wang F, Sun W, Umar S, Zhong C, Zhang J. 2021. Relating Gut Microbiome and Its Modulating Factors to Immunotherapy in Solid Tumors: A Systematic Review. Frontiers in Oncology 2021 Mar 18, 11, 642110. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33816289/
• Bi J, Yang S, Li L, Dai Q, Borcherding N, Wagner BA, Buettner GR, Spitz DR, Leslie KK, Zhang J#, Meng X. 2019. Metadherin enhances the vulnerability of cancer cells to ferroptosis. Cell Death & Disease 2019 Sep 17, 10 (10), 682 #Co-corresponding Author. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31527591/
• Xu K, Park D, Magis AT, Zhang J, Zhou W, Sica GL, Ramalingam SS, Curran WJ, Deng X. 2019. Small Molecule KRAS Agonist for Mutant KRAS Cancer Therapy. Molecular Cancer 2019 April 10, 18 (1), 85. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30971271/
• Strouse C, Mangalam A, Zhang J. 2019. Bugs in the system: bringing the human microbiome to bear in cancer immunotherapy. Gut Microbes 2019, 10 (2), 109-112. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30183502/
• Li R, Ding C, Zhang J#, Xie M, Park D, Ding Y, Chen G, Zhang G, Gilbert-Ross M, Zhou W, Marcus AI, Sun SY, Chen ZG, Sica GL, Ramalingam SS, Magis AT, Fu H, Khuri FR, Curran WJ, Owonikoko TK, Shin DM, Zhou J, Deng X. 2017. Modulation of Bax and mTOR for Cancer Therapeutics. Cancer Research 2017 Jun 1, 77 (11), 3001-3012. #Co-1st author. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28381544/
• Schoenfeld JD, Sibenaller ZA, Mapuskar KA, Wagner BA, Cramer-Morales KL, Furqan M, Sandhu S, Carlisle TL, Smith MC, Abu Hejleh T, Berg DJ, Zhang J, Keech J, Parekh KR, Bhatia S, Monga V, Bodeker KL, Ahmann L, Vollstedt S, Brown H, Shanahan Kauffman EP, Schall ME, Hohl RJ, Clamon GH, Greenlee JD, Howard MA, Schultz MK, Smith BJ, Riley DP, Domann FE, Cullen JJ, Buettner GR, Buatti JM, Spitz DR, Allen BG. 2017. O₂^⋅– and H₂O₂-Mediated Disruption of Fe Metabolism Causes the Differential Susceptibility of NSCLC and GBM Cancer Cells to Pharmacological Ascorbate. Cancer Cell 2017 April 10, 31 (4), 487-500.e8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28366679/
• Zhang J, Shridhar R, Dai Q, Song J, Barlow SC, Yin L, Sloane BF, Miller FR, Meschonat C, Li BD, Abreo F, Keppler D. 2004. Cystatin M: a novel candidate tumor suppressor gene for breast cancer. Cancer Research 2004 Oct 1, 64 (19), 6957-64. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15466187/

Terri Heimann Oppenheimer

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Terri Oppenheimer has been writing about mesothelioma and asbestos topics for over ten years. She has a degree in English from the College of William and Mary. Terri’s experience as the head writer of our Mesothelioma.net news blog gives her a wealth of knowledge which she brings to all Mesothelioma.net articles she authors.

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Dave Foster

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Dave has been a mesothelioma Patient Advocate for over 10 years. He consistently attends all major national and international mesothelioma meetings. In doing so, he is able to stay on top of the latest treatments, clinical trials, and research results. He also personally meets with mesothelioma patients and their families and connects them with the best medical specialists and legal representatives available.

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