In one aspect, the invention relates to substituted 6-amino-5,8-dioxo-5,8-dihydronaphthalene-1-sulfonamide analogs and derivatives thereof, substituted 4-amino-5H-naphtho[1,8-cd]isothiazol-5-one 1,1-dioxide analogs and derivatives thereof, and related compounds, which are useful as inhibitors of STAT protein activity; synthetic methods for making the compounds; pharmaceutical compositions comprising the compounds; and methods of treating disorders of uncontrolled cellular proliferation associated with a STAT protein activity dysfunction using the compounds and compositions. This abstract is intended as a scanning tool for purposes of searching in the particular art and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention.