• Professor Alonso has been recognized for her work in promoting and mentoring cancer researchers’ careers

November 18, 2022.- The Spanish Association for Research on Cancer (ASEICA) has announced today the winners of the ASEICA 2022 Awards in the categories of ‘Women and Science’ and ‘Social Commitment’.

The ASEICA-Woman Award recognizes professionals who stand out as benchmarks in the visualization, promotion and launch of women scientists in the field of oncology. This year, this recognition has gone to María José Alonso, Professor of Biopharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Technology at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), who takes over from previous winners such as the oncologists Pilar Garrido or Ana Lluch, all of them with outstanding scientific careers and proven work in favor of the professional advancement of women.

“At ASEICA we continue to support the gender solving problems that unfortunately persist in our area”, stated Luis Paz-Ares, president of the scientific society. “María José Alonso is a benchmark for the profile of self-made researchers, who have reached the highest levels of international recognition, promoting young talent on their way, particularly women scientists”, said Marisol Soengas, vice president of the association and head of ASEICA-Woman.

Professor Alonso thanked ASEICA for this recognition. “My laboratory is very committed to developing new therapeutic strategies to fight cancer, particularly in the field of personalized medicine”, said Alonso, who added that “above all, I feel very committed to the scientific and professional development of women, as evidenced by the fact that 30 female doctors have trained with me and I have always surrounded myself with women in all the positions I have held”.

Maria José Alonso is a pioneer in the field of nanomedicine, where she has made numerous discoveries that have placed her in the top ten in Pharmacology and being on ‘The Power List’ of the most influential researchers in the field of biopharmaceutical compounds. Alonso has coordinated several research consortia funded by the WHO, the Gates Foundation and the European Commission, participating in numerous international projects. She is the author of more than 300 scientific contributions with more than 34,000 citations and inventor of 22 families of patents.

Together with Professor Alonso, in this 2022 edition of the ASEICA Awards was also awarded the solidarity entity +QueUnTrail-Alcoi in the category of ‘Social Commitment’.