SUMMARY
Ricardo D. Parrondo, M.D., studies plasma cell disorders and lymphoid malignancies. His research focuses on developing new treatment strategies for multiple myeloma and related plasma cell neoplasms. He translates advances in immunotherapy into prospective clinical trials for patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed and refractory disease. Dr. Parrondo evaluates novel drug combinations, B-cell maturation antigen-directed therapies and approaches that may extend immunotherapy to earlier stages of plasma cell disease, including solitary plasmacytoma.
Dr. Parrondo combines clinical trials with translational studies of treatment response and resistance. He uses flow cytometry, single-cell and bulk RNA sequencing, whole-genome sequencing, and immune profiling to characterize malignant plasma cells and the immune microenvironment. His program also uses retrospective cohorts, real-world evidence and systematic reviews to evaluate treatment effectiveness and address clinical questions not fully answered by prospective trials.
Focus areas
- Multiple myeloma immunotherapy. Dr. Parrondo develops prospective trials of novel immunotherapeutic combinations for multiple myeloma. He studies B-cell maturation antigen-directed antibody-drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies, including teclistamab, belantamab mafodotin and other emerging therapies, to determine how treatment strategies can be optimized for patients with relapsed or refractory disease.
- Therapy resistance mechanisms. Dr. Parrondo investigates why multiple myeloma becomes resistant to B-cell maturation antigen-directed treatments. He uses genomic sequencing, RNA sequencing, flow cytometry and immune profiling to study loss or alteration of the treatment target and changes in the tumor immune microenvironment that may influence response and inform the sequencing of immunotherapies.
- Treatment dose and sequence. Dr. Parrondo evaluates how dose, schedule and treatment sequence can improve the balance between effectiveness and toxicity. His investigator-initiated studies include alternative dosing schedules for belantamab mafodotin and combinations of teclistamab with immunomodulatory therapy, with correlative studies designed to explain response and resistance.
- Real-world treatment outcomes. Dr. Parrondo explores treatment effectiveness outside clinical trials using retrospective cohorts, multicenter datasets, systematic reviews and meta-analyses. His work evaluates contemporary therapies for multiple myeloma and lymphoid malignancies, including cellular therapies and bispecific antibodies, to address questions about outcomes, toxicity and treatment use across broader patient populations.
- Earlier plasma cell disease. Dr. Parrondo studies immunotherapy for solitary plasmacytoma, an earlier stage plasma cell neoplasm that can progress to systemic multiple myeloma. He evaluates whether highly active systemic therapy can alter disease progression and uses disease-monitoring and biomarker studies to better characterize treatment response.
Significance to patient care
Multiple myeloma and related blood cancers can come back after treatment or stop responding to therapies that once worked. Dr. Parrondo's research looks for better treatment combinations, safer dosing approaches and more effective ways to use newer immunotherapies. He also studies why treatments stop working, which may help guide the choice of the next therapy. By testing these approaches in clinical trials and studying how treatments perform in everyday care, his work may lead to more treatment options, fewer serious side effects and better disease control.
Professional highlights
- Mayo Clinic:
- Georg Haub Family Career Development Award in Cancer Research, Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, 2026-2029.
- Clinical Trialist Training Program, Center for Clinical and Translational Science, 2025-2027.
- Principal investigator, Testing Teclistamab (TECVAYLI) in Combination With Iberdomide for Relapsed or Refractory Multiple Myeloma, Experimental Therapeutics Clinical Trials Network, National Cancer Institute, 2024-2026.
- Robert A. Winn Career Development Award, Robert A. Winn Excellence in Clinical Trials Award Program, 2022-2024.
- Emerging Leaders in Bone Marrow Transplantation, Bone Marrow Transplantation, 2023.