Simone Harrison

Research Profile: I am a field epidemiologist with over 30 years of experience conducting applied public health research. In addition to my role at JCU, where I have served for 34 years, I hold an Adjunct A/Prof position at the University of Southern Queensland. I have a particular interest in the epidemiology and prevention of skin cancer (particularly pigmented moles and melanoma) and finding "real-world" solutions to public health problems to reduce morbidity and mortality in Queensland's highly susceptible population.

My doctoral research focused primarily on the relevance of childhood sun exposure in the aetiology of pigmented moles (the major phenotypic risk-factor for cutaneous melanoma). It culminated in manuscripts published in The Lancet and JNCI. I have directed several RCTs and large community-based skin cancer prevention interventions. I have attracted over $7 million in research funding and have published over 100 peer-reviewed contributions despite working mostly part-time for family reasons. I am an invited member of the SunSmart Program Expert Advisory Committee (Cancer Council NSW), the Queensland Skin Cancer Prevention Alliance, and Education Queensland's Sun smart school uniform advisory panel, in addition to sitting on Standards Australia's Technical Committee TX-021 (responsible for revising Australian and New Zealand Standard for the Evaluation and Classification of sun-protective clothing AS/NZ 4399).