Overview
Dr. Ellsworth received his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Brigham Young University. He then joined the defense communications industry briefly before returning to complete prerequisite coursework for medical school. He attended the University of Utah School of Medicine and remained there to complete the Med-Peds residency program. He received fellowship training in Infectious Diseases at the NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center and then joined the faculty in the Division of Infectious Disease at Weill Cornell Medicine in 2018. During his fellowship and into the start of his faculty career he completed a Master of Science in Clinical and Translational Research at the Weill Cornell Clinical and Translational Science Center. He completed formal training in the performance of high resolution anoscopy and treatment of anal HSIL. He leads the AIDS Malignancy Consortium site at Weill Cornell Medicine and is an active researcher in this group. He also is a co-investigator in the AIDS Clinic Trials Group and the HIV Prevention Trials Network. He is co-chair of a multicenter study seeking to improve detection of cervical high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) or precancer in Latin America (U54 PI: Timothy Wilkin). His current work focuses on improving screening tests for cervical and anal HSIL as well as treatment of cervical and anal HSIL to improve the prevention of HPV related cancer.
Highlights
- 1Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2021
- 2Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2021
- 3Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2023
Publications
Funding
Active
7 grants- KPP30AI191337-01A1Columbia University-Weill Cornell Medicine CFAR (CU-WCM CFAR)National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2026–2031 · via Columbia University
- Co-I1 TR7HA53197-01-00Northeast/ Caribbean AIDS Education and Training Centers - MAIHealth Resources and Services Administration · 2024–2029 · via Columbia University
- Co-IUM1AI069419-15Weill Cornell Medicine - Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Clinical Trials UnitNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2013–2027· 2 renewals
- MPIU54CA242639-06S3Partnership for Prevention of HPV-Associated Cancers in People Living with HIV: Brazil, Mexico, and Puerto Rico - Foreign Subsite SupplementNational Cancer Institute · 2019–2027· 4 renewals
- MPIUM1AI068619-19HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN106 FHI360 - WCM)National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2020–2026 · via FHI 360· 2 renewals
- MPIUM1CA121947-15AMC Domestic Site - Weill Cornell MedicineNational Cancer Institute · 2016–2026 · via EMMES Corporation· 2 renewals
- Co-IUM1AI164565-01REACH: Research Enterprise to Advance a Cure for HIVNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2021–2026
Completed grants (3)
- Co-IUG1CA275414-01Partnership for advancing cervical cancer prevention in women living with HIV (CASCADE - Research Hub)National Cancer Institute · 2022–2024
- Co-ICTSC Internal Funding UL1Clinical and Translational Science Center- Institutional CTSC Internal Funding UL1CTSC Cost Share · 2017–2022
- Co-IUM1AI068636-14S2Leadership and Operations Center (LOC), AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) [UM1AI068636] - 1560 B WA818National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2020–2020 · via University of California, Los Angeles
Clinical research
Active
1 study- PINCT04949464Impact of Behavior Modification Interventions and Lung Cancer Screening on Smoking Cessation in People Living With HIV: A Feasibility StudyNA · AIDS Malignancy Consortium · OPEN TO ACCRUAL (as of 2024)HIV Infection; Tobacco-Related Carcinoma
Completed & closed trials (6)
- PINCT06560684A PHASE 2 CROSSOVER STUDY OF ON-DEMAND PREP FORMULATIONS COMPARING RECTAL AND ORAL TENOFOVIR-BASED PREP EVALUATING EXTENDED SAFETY, ACCEPTABILITY, AND PHARMACOKINETICS/PHARMACODYNAMICSPHASE2 · National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases · CLOSED TO ACCRUAL (as of 2026)Tenofovir
- PINCT06002126Optimization of Cervical Cancer Screening Among Women Living With HIV in Latin American CountriesNA · Weill Medical College of Cornell University · CLOSED TO ACCRUAL (as of 2025)Cervix Cancer; HPV Infection; Cervical High Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesion; HIV Infections
- PINCT03603808A Phase 2 Evaluation of VGX-3100, a Synthetic DNA Immunotherapy Targeting Human Papillomavirus 16 and 18 E6 and E7 Proteins, for Anal High-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesions (HSIL) in HIV-Positive IndividualsPHASE2 · AIDS Malignancy Consortium · IRB STUDY CLOSURE (as of 2025)Anal Intraepithelial Neoplasia; High Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Neoplasia; HIV Positivity; Human Papillomavirus-16 Positive; Human Papillomavirus-18 Positive
- PINCT04255849Nine-valent HPV Vaccine to Prevent Persistent Oral HPV Infection in Men Living With HIVPHASE3 · Weill Medical College of Cornell University · CLOSED TO ACCRUAL (as of 2024)HPV Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma; HIV-1-infection; HPV Infection
- PINCT04199689A Phase 3, International, Multi-center, Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial to Study the Efficacy, Immunogenicity, and Safety of the 9vHPV Vaccine, a Multivalent L1 Virus-like Particle Vaccine, in the Prevention of Oral Persistent Infection With HPV Types 16, 18, 31, 33, 45, 52, or 58 in Adult Males, 20 to 45 Years of AgePHASE3 · Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp · CLOSED TO ACCRUAL (as of 2021)Papillomavirus Infections
- PIA5395: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy of Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin to Prevent Hospitalization or Death in Persons with COVID-19National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases · IRB STUDY CLOSURE (as of 2020)
News mentions
- In Brief: Treating Precancerous Anal Lesions Reduces Anal Cancer Risk by More Than Half in People with HIVJune 29, 2022
A large clinical trial among people living with HIV has found that treating anal precancerous lesions cuts the risk of developing anal cancer by 57 percent compared with active monitoring with no treatment.
- Take Your Medicine: Can a ‘Smart’ Pill Bottle Help Combat HIV?September 30, 2021
Over the past few decades, HIV treatment has advanced remarkably: simply by taking one pill each day, most patients can suppress the virus to the point where it’s undetectable and can’t be transmitted to someone else. While the therapy— generally a combination of three drugs in a single dose—has markedly slowed the HIV epidemic, it hasn’t stopped it entirely.
- Large Study Finds Convalescent Plasma Doesn’t Help Seriously Ill COVID-19 PatientsSeptember 28, 2021
Convalescent plasma did not reduce the risk of intubation or death for hospitalized COVID-19 patients in a large, international clinical trial conducted by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian investigators in collaboration with lead investigators at McMaster University.
- NIAID Renews Weill Cornell Medicine Grant for Advancing Prevention and Treatment Research for HIVDecember 1, 2020
Weill Cornell Medicine has received a renewal of a prestigious grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health to continue cutting-edge clinical research into treating and preventing infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
Mentoring
- ATAdam TuckerMD mentee · Class of 2026