Researcher Berta L. Sánchez-Laorden, awarded a Beca Leonardo for her work on tumor microenvironment reprogramming

9 de July de 2025

• These grants recognize innovative projects and support scientists at key stages of their careers.
• Sánchez-Laorden’s research explores new strategies to block metastasis by reprogramming the tumor microenvironment and improving therapy response.

Photo: Berta L. Sánchez-Laorden, CSIC Tenured Scientist at the Institute for Neurosciences. Source: IN CSIC-UMH

Berta López Sánchez-Laorden, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) tenured scientist at the Institute of Neurosciences (IN), a joint center of the CSIC and the Miguel Hernández University (UMH) in Elche, has been selected as one of 60 recipients across Spain of the prestigious 2025 Beca Leonardo, awarded by the BBVA Foundation. In the Biology and Medicine category, only six grants were awarded, one of which was granted to Sánchez-Laorden, underscoring the excellence of her scientific career.

She leads a research group within the Cell Plasticity in Development and Disease Laboratory, where she conducts cutting-edge studies in the field of cancer, with a particular focus on melanoma. Her group investigates how cellular plasticity and the tumor microenvironment contribute to the aggressiveness of this type of cancer and seeks new strategies to reprogram stromal cells, non-cancerous cells that form the tumor’s surrounding environment, to suppress metastatic growth and improve the response to therapies. “I am very grateful for this recognition of my research career. It is a valuable opportunity to be part of the Leonardo network, which supports scientific talent in Spain”, said Berta López Sánchez-Laorden.

A solid career in cancer research

Berta L. Sánchez-Laorden holds a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Murcia. She carried out part of her research career in the United Kingdom, at the Institute of Cancer Research in London and the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute. In 2014, she returned to Spain to join the Institute of Neurosciences, and in 2017, she was appointed as a Tenured Scientist at CSIC.

Since then, she has secured funding from numerous highly competitive national and international calls (Melanoma Research Alliance, Fundación FERO, Harry J. Lloyd Trust, among others) and received the international BEUG Foundation Award for metastasis research. Her scientific output comprises over 30 publications, with more than 2,800 citations, and includes articles published in leading journals such as Nature, Cancer Cell, Nature Medicine, Nature Metabolism, and Cancer Discovery.

Source: Institute for Neurosciences CSIC-UMH (in.comunicacion@umh.es)