One of the most notable is his seminal work describing the first-known molecular link between an environmental carcinogen, aflatoxin B1, and a specific mutation at codon 249 of the p53-encoding TP53 gene in hepatocellular carcinoma (Nature 350:427, 1991 and web of science).

[8][9] Many of these studies were among the first to highlight the deleterious effects of tobacco carcinogens and their damage to human health (e.g., Cancer Res.

Moreover, he led the development of first-in-kind in vitro models of human bronchial epithelial cells from patient explants (e.g., Cancer Res.

[10][11] In parallel, he has extensively investigated p53 functions in the regulation of DNA repair, apoptosis, senescence, and tumorigenicity (e.g., Nat Genet.

Peter Cerruti and Curtis Harris, using the novel and highly sensitive TP53 mutational load assay, discovered TP53 mutant DNA in non-malignant lung and plasma in tobacco smokers (PNAS 97: 12770–5, 2000; Science 264: 1317–19, 1994; Cancer Res.

Importantly, these studies identified early-stage lung and colon cancers that have poor prognoses due to the likelihood of undetected micrometastasis.

Harris has been an expert witness at hearings concerning OSHA Regulations on the Identification, Classification and Regulation of Toxic Substances Posing a Potential Occupational Carcinogenic Risk, a member of the technical review committee for the USPHS Surgeon General Report on Harmful Effects of Smokeless Tobacco and was a contributing a to the Surgeon General's 2004 seminal report on the Health Consequences of Smoking.

Moreover, he has demonstrated a steadfast from the 1980s to the present commitment on the Advisory Committee and honored consultant to the Radiation Effects Research Foundation in Hiroshima Japan, an organization dedicated to understanding the health consequences of radiation exposure among survivors of atomic bombs.

Harris cofounded the Aspen Cancer Conference,[16] a non-profit organization, in 1985 with Dr. Ben Trump where he serves as chairman of the board of directors.