Miguel Ángel Quintela receives the Young Researchers Award from the AstraZeneca Foundation

The head of the CNIO’s Breast Cancer Clinical Research Unit, Miguel Ángel Quintela, has received the Young Researchers Award given by the AstraZeneca Foundation in the Oncology category for his work on the effects of antiangiogenic drugs in breast cancer. The award ceremony was held today at the Spanish National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC).

The prize recognizes that the research conducted by Quintela has “transferability to clinical practice, which could take the form of the development of a personalized breast cancer vaccine”, according to the press release from the Foundation.

Specifically, the award recognizes the study by Quintela “Immune reprogramming in breast cancer pre-exposed to hypoxia-induced antiangiogenesis – definition of neoantigens based on circulating DNA.” This work forms part of a line of research –antiangiogenic agents– that Quintela and his team have been working on for several years.

The prize given by the AstraZeneca Foundation will allow Quintela to continue working in this and in other lines of investigation. Along with him, three other researchers have received recognition from the Foundation. Rubén Nogueiras, award winner in the category of Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity, María Rosa Faner, in COPD, and Manuel Sánchez, in Cardiac Rehabilitation in Post Acute Coronary Syndrome.

Cecilia Taieb, Director General of the AstraZeneca Foundation, points out “the increase in participation and the superb quality of the works presented, which shows that we have the best scientific talent, of key importance for the future of treatments and patients.”

At the previous edition, another researcher from the CNIO also received an award. In this case the recipient was David Olmos, Head of the Prostate Cancer Clinical Research Unit.