Dr. Cummings is an emeritus Professor of Internal Medicine, Epidemiology and Biostatistics and Executive Director of the S.F. Coordinating Center (SFCC) in the CPMC Research Institute.

He has designed and led several large cohort studies related to aging, such as the Study of Muscle Mobility and Aging (SOMMA). He also co-designed and led large pivotal randomized trials including several that won approval for commonly used treatments for osteoporosis. He is an editor of the standard Designing Clinical Research in 5th edition (Wolters Kuhler). Dr. Cummings organized the Longevity Consortium that has continued over two decades to discover the biological basis of longevity. He also served on the NIA National Advisory Council on Aging. He has over 700 publications and has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine.