Center for
Global Health

Scholar

Languages: English (Native), Spanish (Elementary Proficiency), Italian (Limited Working Proficiency)

Bio statement

Robert Gross, MD, MSCE is Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, where he serves as a Center for Global Health Scholar and Director of the International Core of the Penn Center for AIDS Research (CFAR). Board certified in both infectious diseases and epidemiology, Dr. Gross has built a distinguished career at the intersection of HIV clinical investigation and global health research, with a particular focus on improving treatment outcomes for people living with HIV in resource-limited settings.

Dr. Gross's international work is anchored in Botswana, where he has led a sustained research program enrolling several thousand participants in studies examining the impact of pharmacogenetic differences on HIV treatment outcomes, as well as broader investigations into the HIV care and treatment continuum. His projects have addressed the full spectrum of HIV care, from identifying risk factors for treatment failure to developing and testing interventions designed to improve outcomes in both the developed and developing world. He is the principal investigator of a Fogarty International Center D43 training grant dedicated to building capacity in HIV clinical epidemiology research in Botswana, reflecting his deep commitment to developing the next generation of global health investigators in-country.

More recently, Dr. Gross has expanded his global research agenda to include the challenge of tobacco use among people with HIV, serving as principal investigator on a randomized controlled trial comparing smoking cessation interventions for people with HIV in Botswana — one of several efforts to address co-morbidities that disproportionately affect HIV-positive populations worldwide.

Dr. Gross's collaborative work in Botswana has been recognized as a model of equitable academic partnership. A five-year evaluation of the Botswana–University of Pennsylvania Partnership, co-authored by Dr. Gross and colleagues, examined how to balance academic productivity with meaningful local impact — a question central to ethical global health engagement. His research interests in the region also extend to antimicrobial resistance and tuberculosis care.

A fellow of both the International Society of Pharmacoepidemiology (ISPE) — where he founded the Adherence Scientific Interest Group — and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), Dr. Gross brings methodological rigor and a commitment to global equity to all of his work. 

Recent global health projects

Thotloetso smoking cessation trial;
Effect of isoniazid on nicotine metabolism in people with HIV

Selected publications

Motlokwa PK, Tsima BM, Martei YM, Ralefala T, Galebole F, Stephens-Shields AJ, Grover S, Gross R. Disparities in Oral Cancer Stage at Presentation in a High HIV Prevalence Setting In Sub-Saharan Africa. JCO Glob Oncol. 2022 Aug;8:e2100439. doi: 10.1200/GO.21.00439. PMID: 35981280; PMCID: PMC9812499.

171. Mantshonyane L, Kgwaadira B, Gross R: The absence of evidence of cure is not a risk for recurrent tuberculosis among patients treated for TB in Botswana. International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease 2021 (in press).

172. Mantshonyane L, Roy J, Levy MZ, Wallis CL, Bar K, Godfrey C, Collier A, LaRosa A, Zheng L, Sun X, Gross R: Participants switching to second-line antiretroviral therapy with susceptible virus display inferior adherence and worse outcomes: an observational analysis of prospectively collected data AIDS Patient Care and STDs 2021 (in press).

Last Updated: 14 May 2026