Harrys A Torres, MD, FAASLD

Biography

Harrys A. Torres, MD, FACP, FIDSA, FAASLD is a Professor of Medicine in the Department of Infectious Diseases, Infection Control, and Employee Health and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. He is board-certified in internal medicine and infectious disease, with additional accreditations in HIV/AIDS and Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. He is the founder and director of the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) clinic at MD Anderson, the first established clinic in the US, and likely in the world, devoted to managing HCV in cancer patients.

Dr. Torres is a member of numerous national committees for professional societies such as the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID). He is the Chair of the AASLD Special Interest Group on HCV (2024-2025). His research interest is to facilitate translational research in the prevention, detection, and treatment of HCV in patients with cancer and hematopoietic cell transplantation. His work addressed the fact that HCV is a neglected condition in cancer patients. Additionally, he has discovered new associations between HCV and other cancers (e.g., Head and Neck cancers). He has also documented the effectiveness, benefits, and safety of antiviral therapy in HCV-infected patients with cancer, including those with hepatocellular carcinoma and B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He is the principal investigator for research grants on HCV received from the NIH/NCI and pharmaceutical companies (investigator-initiated studies).

Dr. Torres is co-author of almost 140 articles published in peer-reviewed journals, including CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Lancet, Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Journal of Hepatology, Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Lancet Haematology, American Journal of Gastroenterology, Leukemia, Clinical Infectious Diseases, Blood, Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, J Natl Compr Canc Netw., Cancer, Liver International, and Journal of Viral Hepatitis with many of his publications accompanied by editorials. His research has been featured on more than 100 professional web resources for physicians and other healthcare professionals and news websites, including Reuters, Fox News, and the Houston Chronicle. He has presented almost 150 abstracts in international meetings and written 8 book chapters. His work on HCV has been awarded multiple times by the AASLD and the American Society of Clinical Oncology among others.

In addition to his research activities, Dr. Torres lectures widely both nationally and internationally. In 2023, he launched the International ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) clinic on viral hepatitis in patients with cancer to educate providers in the U.S. and other countries on managing cancer patients with viral hepatitis. He also trains infectious diseases and gastroenterology fellows at the hepatitis clinic at MD Anderson, having trained over 60 young physicians in viral hepatitis. In 2023, he received the Ashbel Smith Professorship, a non-endowed professorship established in 1963 by the University of Texas Board of Regents. This award recognizes individuals who demonstrate excellence in teaching and scholarship and exemplify qualities that serve as a model for students and faculty. Additionally, Dr. Torres has extensive administrative experience; he has served as the Medical Director and Patient Experience Officer for the Internal Medicine Center at MD Anderson for many years.