Faculty & Staff

Grace X. Ma, PhD, CHES
Professor
Director of the Center for Asian Health

Grace X. Ma, Ph.D. is a tenured full Professor in the Department of Public Health and Director of Center for Asian Health, College of Health Professions at Temple University. As a behavioral health scientist, Dr. Ma’s research focuses on community-based participatory intervention research (CBPR), early detection, patient navigation of Hepatitis B, cancers and chronic illnesses, smoking cessation, access and quality of healthcare in medically underserved, uninsured and high-risk Asian American populations. In 2000, Dr. Ma founded the Center for Asian Health, one of the first in the nation dedicated to reducing cancer and other health disparities among Asian Americans. Dr. Ma In partnership with Asian community leaders co-founded the first Asian Community Cancer Coalition (ACCC) in the Eastern region of the U.S., including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York City and Washington DC areas. Over the past decade, Dr. Ma has received 44 grant awards from various sources, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to conduct research in her expertise areas. Dr. Ma’s research collaboration extends to the Southeast and Southwest regions of China. This international component of her research focuses on longitudinal studies of tobacco and cancer control in China. Dr. Ma has authored and co-authored 5 books, over 90 peer-reviewed publications and delivered over 400 professional presentations at regional, national and international conferences.  The impacts of these publications and presentations are reflected in public health academic teaching and mentorship, research and practices, as well as in Asian and minority health care policies and programs in the United States.

Dr. Ma has taught graduate courses in public health, substance abuse and addiction, research methods, and behavioral health, among others. Dr. Ma has trained and mentored 17 post-doctoral fellows/junior faculty; 51 pre-doctoral fellows in dissertations; and 22 masters fellows in theses.

Dr. Ma has served on numerous scientific advisory boards in cancer, Hepatitis B, tobacco control, diabetes and other chronic disease issues. She has also served on national, state and community health advisory boards. She is an active member of numerous public health professional associations, journal editorial boards, national and statewide tobacco and cancer control plans.  Dr. Ma, a nationally and internationally recognized scholar and a lead mentor for many junior researchers and faculty, has received numerous distinguished awards from academic institutions, scientific associations, and NIH and community organizations that include 2009 Outstanding Scientific Publication Award by NCI-CRCHD, NIH, 2009 Outstanding Health Leadership Award from Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association and Chinese Community Center, Inc. NYC,  2008 Distinguished Asian Health Leader Award from Penn Asian Senior Services, 2006 NYC Chinese Community Cultural Center’s Asian Health Leadership Award, 2005 National Institutes of Health’s Martin Luther King Award in Reducing Health Disparities, 2004 NCI-CRCHD Community Healthcare Leadership Award, and 2001 NCI’s Atlantic Region Cancer Information Service award.

Research Interests:

Behavioral Health Intervention
Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR)

Cancer and Health Disparities Research (esp, Asian populations)
Tobacco Control and Lung Cancer Prevention
Global or International Health

Selected Recent Grants:

A Culturally Appropriate Cervical Cancer Intervention for Underserved Vietnamese Women (RO1), funded by NIH-DHHS (Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD)

ATECAR - Asian Community Cancer Network (U01), funded by NCI, NIH-DHHS (Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD)

A Randomized Trial of Hep B Screening and Vaccination in High Risk Vietnamese (RO1), funded by NIH-DHHS (Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD)

A Physician-Based Trial to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening in Chinese (RO1), funded by NIH-DHHS, (Co-Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD; Principal Investigator: Wenchi Liang, PhD)

All-In-One Breast Cancer Education and Clinical Support for Asian American Women, Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure Philadelphia (Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD)

CBPR Hepatitis B Intervention For Underserved Korean Americans (R24), funded NIH-DHHS (Principal Investigator: Grace X. Ma, PhD)

Facilitating cervical cancer intervention among underserved Korean American women funded by American Cancer Society (Co-Principal Investigator: Ma, G.X) (PI: Fang, C.)

Selected Recent Publications:

Ma, G.X., Shive, E.S., Wang, M.Q., Tan, Y., (2009). Cancer Screening Behaviors and Barriers in Asian Americans. American Journal of Health Behavior.33 (6):650-660.

Ma, G.X., Toubbeh, J., Wang, M., Shive, S., Cooper, L. & Pham, A. (2009) Factors Associated with Cervical Cancer Screening Compliance and Noncompliance among Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Cambodian Women. Journal of National Medical Association. 101(6):541-551

Ma, G.X., Poon, A. & Toubbeh, J. (2009).  Diffusion of Philadelphia’s No-Smoking Policy to Chinese Businesses. American Journal of Health Studies.23(4): 162-173

Ma, G.X. & Daus, G.P (2009). Health Interventions in Asian American Community in Trinh-Shevrin, C, Islam, N.S. & Rey, M.J (Eds). Asian American Communities and Health. Jossey-Bass, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Lee, S., Martinez, Ma, G.X., Hsu, C.E., Robinson, E.S., Bawa, J., Juon, H.S. (2010) Barriers to Health Care Access in 13 Asian American Communities.  American Journal of Health Behavior. 34(1):21-30

Wang, C., Ma, G.X., Zhai, C., Cao, P., et al. (2009) Smoking status among urban family and the measures of smoking control.  Journal of Hygiene Research. 38(1): 78-82.

Lee, S., Hee-Soon, J., Genevieve, M., Chiehwen, E.H., Robinson, S., Bawa, J., Ma, G. X. (2009) Model Minority at Risk: Expressed Needs of Mental Health by Asian American Young Adults, Journal of Community Health. 34(2):144-152

Wenchi, L., Chen, M., Ma, G.X., Mandelblatt., J. (2008) Knowledge, Perceptions, and Communication about Colorectal Cancer Screening among Chinese American Primary Care Physicians. Clinical Medicine: Gastroenterology: 1:21-26.

Ma, G. X., Shive, S., Toubbeh, J., Tan, Y, Zavislak, J., Wu, D. (2008). Knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of Chinese Hepatitis B screening and vaccination. American Journal of Health Behavior. 32(2):178-187.

Xie,Y., Ma, G. X., Lan, Y., Zhou, D., Shive, S., Luo., Zhong, F. (2008) Evaluation on effects of the interference in workers’ smoking related intention in workplaces in Chengdu. Modern Preventive Medicine. 35(3):517-519.

Ma, G.X., Shive, E.S., Toubbeh, J., Tan, Y., Wang, M. (2007) Factors Associated With Mammography Compliance and Non-Compliance Among Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese And Cambodian Women. American Journal of Health Studies. 22(4):234-243.

Ma, G.X., Shive. S., Fang, C., Feng, Z., Parameswaran, L., Pham, A., & Khanh, C. (2007). Knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of Hepatitis B screening and vaccination and liver cancer among Vietnamese Americans. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved. 18, 63-74.

Ma, G.X., Fang, C., Shive, S., Toubbeh, J.I., & Siu, P. (2007). Risk perceptions, barriers, and self-efficacy of Hepatitis B screening and vaccination among Vietnamese immigrants. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. 9(3):213-20

Fang, C., Ma, G.X., Tan, Y., & Nungia C. (2007). A multifaceted intervention to increase cervical cancer screening among underserved Korean women. Cancer, Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. 16(6): 1298-302.

Ma, G.X., Tan, Y., Toubbeh, J. I., Edwards, R.L., Shive, S. E., Siu, P. Wang, P., & Fang, C. Y. (2006) ATECAR Special Population Network: A model for reducing Asian American cancer health disparities. Cancer. 107(S8), 1995-2005

Su, X.F., Ma, G. X., Seals, B., Tan, Y., & Hausman A. (2006) Breast cancer early detection among Chinese women in the Philadelphia area. Journal of Women’s Health 15(5), 507-519

Ma, G.X., Tan, Y., Fang, C., Toubbeh, J.T., Shive, S. (2006) Passive smoke & its effect on Asian Americans. In Jeorgensen, N. (Ed), Passive smoke and health research. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science Publishers.

Ma, G.X., Fang, C., Knauer, C., Tan, Y., Shive, S. (2006). Tobacco dependence, risk perceptions and self-efficacy among Korean Americans smokers. Addictive Behaviors. 31, 1776-1784.

Fang, C., Ma, G.X., Miller, S., Tan, Y., Zerr, T., Su, X., & Shive S. (2006). A brief smoking cessation intervention for Chinese and Korean American smokers. Preventive Medicine. 43, 321-324.

Ma, G.X., Tan, Y., Su, X.F., Toubbeh, J.I., Shive, S. & Lan, Y.J. (2005). Acculturation and smoking behaviors among Asian American populations. Health Education Research, 19(6), 615-625.

Ma, G.X., Tan, Y., Fang, C., Toubbeh, J.I., & Shive, S.E. (2005). Knowledge, attitudes and behavior regarding secondhand smoke among Asian Americans. Preventive Medicine, 41, 446-453.

Ma, G.X., Shive, S.E., Tan, Y., Feeley, R. M. (2004). The impact of acculturation on smoking in Asian American homes. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 15(2), 267-280.

Ma, G.X., Toubbeh, J.I., Su, X.F., & Edwards, R.L. (2004). ATECAR: An Asian community-based participatory research model. Health Promotion Practice, 5(4), 382-394.

Ma, G. X. & Fleisher, L. (2003). Awareness of cancer information among Asian Americans. Journal of Community Health, 28(2), 115-130.