Dr. Ford's primary research interest is in understanding pathways that contribute to cancer-related racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities. He directs community-oriented projects designed to 1) elucidate risk factors that contribute to the disproportionate cancer burden in low-income minority communities in Baltimore City, and 2) evaluate the efficacy of intervention strategies to improve preventive care for individuals at risk for, or diagnosed with cancer.

Dr. Ford recently led a systematic literature review on barriers to participation in cancer-related trials. His active studies include 1) Cancer Risk Assessment in Baltimore (CRAB), a cross-sectional study of risk factors in a predominantly African American sample of Baltimore City Residents, and 2) Improving Participation in Oncology Research Trials (IMPORT), an investigation on determinants of racial disparities in participation in cancer therapeutic trials. He was recently awarded a cooperative agreement from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to conduct a population-based randomized controlled trial (N = 3,074), to test the efficacy of a behavioral intervention to improve adherence to cancer screening and treatment among African American Medicare beneficiaries. He also directs low-cost breast, colon and prostate cancer screening programs targeting low-income Baltimore City residents.

Dr. Ford maintains a longstanding interest in understanding determinants of disparities in respiratory health. He is currently funded by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute to conduct the "Baltimore Asthma Severity Study (BASS)", in order to understand genetic and immunophenotypic correlates of asthma severity.

epidemiology, cancer, asthma, health disparities, clinical trials

Manhattan Central Medical Society Outstanding Physician of the Year 1998

New York City Health Commissioner’s Award for Excellence in Public Health 2000

Morris Heights Health Center Health Leadership Award 2002

West Harlem Environmental Action Heroes’ Award 2003

Taioli E, Ford JG, Trachman J, Demopoulos R, Li YL and Garte S. CYP1A1 polymorphisms and lung cancer risk in African Americans. Carcinogenesis. 1998; 19:813-817.

Li Y, Brandt-Rauf P, Carney WP, Tenney DY and Ford JG. Circulating anti-p53 antibodies in lung cancer and relationship to histology and smoking. Biomarkers. 1999; 4:381-390.

Burchard E, Silverman EK, Rosenwaser LJ, Borish L, Yandava C, Pillari A, Weiss ST, Lilly CM, Ford JG and Drazen JM. Association between a sequence variant in the IL-4 gene promoter and FEV1 in asthma. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 1999; 160:919-22.

Israel E, Drazen JM, Liggett SB, Boushey HA, Cherniack RM, Chinchilli VM, Cooper DM, Fahy JV, Fish JE, Ford JG, Kraft M, Kunselman S, Lazarus SC, Lemanske RF, Martin RJ, McLean DE, Peters SP, Silverman EK, Sorkness CA, Szefler SJ, Weiss ST, Yandava CN.. The effect of polymorphisms of the beta2-adrenergic receptor on the response to regular use of albuterol in asthma. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 2000; 162:75-80.

Ford JG, Li Y, O'Sullivan M, Garte SJ, Taioli E, and Brandt-Rauf PW. Glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1) polymorphism and lung cancer risk in African Americans. Carcinogenesis. 2000; 21:1971-5.

Lemanske RF Jr, Sorkness CA, Mauger EA, Lazarus SC, Boushey HA, Fahy JV, Drazen JM, Chinchilli VM, Craig T, Fish JE, Ford JG, Israel E, Kraft M, Martin RJ, Nachman SA, Peters SP, Spahn JD, Szefler SJ. Inhaled Corticosteroid Reduction and Elimination in Patients With Persistent Asthma Receiving Salmeterol: A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA. 2001; 285:2594-2603.

Lazarus SC, Boushey HA, Fahy JV, Chinchilli VM, Lemanske RF Jr, Sorkness CA, Kraft M, Fish JE, Peters SP, Craig T, Drazen JM, Ford JG, Israel E, Martin RJ, Mauger EA, Nachman SA, Spahn JD, Szefler SJ. Long-Acting beta2-Agonist Monotherapy vs Continued Therapy With Inhaled Corticosteroids in Patients With Persistent Asthma: A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA. 2001; 285:2583-2593.

Ford JG, Rennick D, Donaldson DD, Venkayya R, McArthur C, Hansell E, Kurup VP, Warnock M, Grunig G. Il-13 and IFN-gamma: interactions in lung inflammation. J Immunol. 2001;167:1769-77.

Miller RL, Chew GL, Bell CA, Biedermann SA, Aggarwal M, Kinney PL, Tsai WY, Whyatt RM, Perera FP, and Ford JG. Prenatal allergen exposure, maternal sensitization, and sensitization in utero to indoor allergens in an inner-city cohort. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2001; 164:995-1001.

Ford JG, Meyer IH, Sternfels P, Findley SE, McLean DE, Fagan JK, Richardson L. Patterns and predictors of asthma related emergency department use. Chest. 2001; 120:1129-1135.

Meyer IH, Copeland L, Fagan J, Sternfels P, and Ford JG. Asthma knowledge among emergency department visitors in Harlem. J. Asthma. 2001; 38:531-539.

Perera FP, Kinney PL, Whyatt R, Kelvin E, Shepard P, Ford JG, Miller RL, Meyer IH, Rauh V. The challenge of preventing environmentally-related disease in young children: community-based research in New York City. Environ Health Perspect. 2002;110:197-204.

Meyer IH, Sternfels P, Fagan JK, Ford JG. Asthma-Related Limitation in Sexual Functioning among Emergency Department Users. Am. J. Public Health. 2002; 92:770-2.

Benhamou S, Lee WJ, Alexandrie AK, Boffetta P, Bouchardy C, Ford J, Gaspari L, Taioli E et al.. Meta- and pooled analyses of the effects of glutathione S-transferase M1 polymorphisms and smoking on lung cancer risk. Carcinogenesis. 2002;23:1343-1350.

Alberg AJ, Diette GB, Ford JG. Invited commentary: Attendance and absence as markers of health status--the example of active and passive cigarette smoking. Am J Epidemiol. 2003;157:870-3.

Meyer IH, Whyatt RM, Perera FP, Ford JG. Risk for asthma in 1-year old infants residing in New York City high-risk neighborhoods. J. Asthma 2003;40:545-50.

Lind DL, Choudhry S, Ung N, Ziv E, Avila PC, Salari K, Ha C, Lovins EG, Coyle NE, Rodriguez-Santana JR, Ford JG, Burchard E et al.. ADAM33 is not associated with asthma in Puerto Rican or Mexican populations. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2003;168:1312-6.

Burchard EG, Avila PC, Nazario S, Casal J, Torres A, Rodriguez-Santana JR, Toscano M, Sylvia JS, Alioto M, Ford JG, Boushey HA, Rodriguez-Cintron W, Drazen JM, Silverman EK; Genetics of Asthma in Latino Americans (GALA) Study. Lower bronchodilator responsiveness in Puerto Rican than in Mexican subjects with asthma. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2004;169:386-92.

Israel E, Chinchilli VM, Ford JG, Boushey HA, Cherniack R, Craig TJ, Deykin A, Fagan JK, Fahy JV, Fish J, Kraft M, Kunselman SJ, Lazarus SC, Lemanske RF Jr, Liggett SB, Martin RJ, Mitra N, Peters SP, Silverman E, Sorkness CA, Szefler SJ, Wechsler ME, Weiss ST, Drazen JM; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Asthma Clinical Research Network. Use of regularly scheduled albuterol treatment in asthma: genotype-stratified, randomised, placebo-controlled cross-over trial. Lancet. 2004; 364:1505-12.

Pesola GR, Sunmonu Y, Huggins G, Ford JG. Measured diffusion capacity versus prediction equation estimates in blacks without lung disease. Respiration. 2004; 71:484-92.

Pesola GR, Xu F, Ahsan H, Sternfels P, Meyer IH, Ford JG. Predicting asthma morbidity in Harlem emergency department patients. Acad Emerg Med. 2004; 11:944-50.

Ford JG and Howerton MW. The science of recruiting minority populations to screening trials. Clinical Trials 2004; 1: 341-2.

Boushey HA, Sorkness CA, King TS, Ford JG, Israel E, et al. Regular vs. intermittent controller therapy for mild persistent asthma. N. Eng J Med. 2005; 352:1519-28.

Ford JG, Howerton MW, Bolen S, Gary TL, Lai GY, Powe NR, Bass EB. Evidence Report on Knowledge and Access to Information on Recruitment of Underrepresented Populations to Cancer Clinical Trials. Evid RepTechnol Assess (Summ). 2005 Jun;(122):1-11.

Garza MA, Blinka M, Luan J, Farabee-Lewis I, Neuhaus CE, Zabora JR, Ford JG. A Culturally-Targeted Intervention to Promote Breast Cancer Screening Among Low-Income Women in East Baltimore. Cancer Control. 2005 Nov;12 Suppl 2:34-41.

Bolen S, Tilburt J, Baffi C, Gary TL, Powe N, Howerton M, Ford J, Lai G, Wilson R, Bass E. Defining "Success" in recruitment of underrepresented populations to cancer clinical trials: moving toward a more consistent approach. Cancer. 2006 Mar 15;106(6):1197-204.

Lai G, Gary TL, Bolen S, Tilburt J, Gary TL, Howerton M, Baffi C, Wilson R, Powe N, Bass E, Ford JG. Effectiveness of Strategies to Recruit Underrepresented Populations into Cancer Clinical Trials. Clinical Trials. In press.

Alberg AJ, Ford JG, Samet JM. Epidemiology of lung cancer. Chest. In press.