John M. Cunningham, MD

2017 Senior Faculty Scholars

Dr. John Cunningham is an internationally renowned pediatric hematologist with expertise in caring for adolescent patients requiring hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for malignant and non-malignant diseases of childhood. He has a particular interest in (the hemoglobinopathies,) a disease syndrome resulting from the commonest gene locus defect seen worldwide. He has specific expertise in the use of novel cellular therapeutics to treat leukemia and lymphoma. And recently, Dr. Cunningham has studied the role of stem cell regulatory pathways that are co-opted and perturbed during tumorigenesis.

Dr. Cunningham is an enthusiastic educator who trained students, residents, and fellows for nearly 15 years at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital prior to coming to the University of Chicago to lead the pediatric hematology/oncology program in 2007. He became Chair of the Department of Pediatrics in 2015. He lectures around the world, holds leadership roles in various national and international societies, and is the current chair of the Council of Extramural Grants of the American Cancer Society.