Recordings available: EP PerMed Round Table Spain and Portugal

Moderator

Affiliation: EIT Health

With over two decades in research and team management across Europe, Cristina Bescos holds a PhD in telecom/biomedical engineering. She’s served as Director of Innovation at EIT Health, CEO of EIT Health Spain, and on various international R&D and healthcare transformation roles with ESA, HP, Telefonica, and Philips, where she managed the European programs in Telehealth, Population Health, and Value-Based-Healthcare.
She has held representation positions in industrial organizations, standardization committees, expert forums and innovation programs like COCIR, CEN, ITU and the EC.
Elected as one of the 100 women leaders in Spain (lastop100), woman with excellent STEM career, and one of the HIMSS global leaders in digital health (future50).

Keynote Speaker & Expert Panellist

Affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, University Hospital Fundación Jiménez Díaz (FJD) CIBERER, ISCIII

• MD PhD, Doctor of Medicine (UAM),
• Head of Department of Medical Genetics, University Hospital Fundación Jiménez Díaz(FJD),
• Scientific Director of the Health Research Institute – FJD – Madrid (IIS-FJD, UAM),
• Associated Professor of the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM).
• PI of Unit 704 CIBER of Rare Diseases, and Corresponding Academic (Royal National Academy of Medicine in Spain)
• co-PI IMPACT Genome 2 Project (2021-2026) and member of ELSI WP (B1MG Project).
• Advisor to the Ministry of Health for the Genetics and Genomics Services Portfolio of the National Health System.
• National Genetics Award (2017). FEDER Research Award (2018), Spanish National Research Award in Medicine and Health Sciences. (2024).

Keynote Speaker & Expert Panellist

Affiliation: CoLAB TRIALS

Raquel Cunha is the Cooperation and Funding Manager of CoLAB TRIALS, a Portuguese private non-profit association specializing in supporting the development of innovative health products through regulatory compliance and clinical validation.
Previously, Raquel Cunha worked as a Clinical Project Manager, gaining experience in managing consortium projects and investigator-initiated clinical studies involving Medical Devices, In Vitro Diagnostic devices, and Pharmaceuticals. Raquel Cunha holds a PhD in Bioengineering Systems from the MIT Portugal Doctoral Program, with a research focus on translational studies involving Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products.

Keynote Speaker & Expert Panellist

Affiliation: Mimark Diagnostics

Dr. Eva Colás is a biologist whose academic journey led her to the field of translational research. Her studies took her to Norway, where she developed a passion for this field, and later to Barcelona, where she pursued a PhD in endometrial cancer. During this time, she began working with gynecological fluids, which ultimately led to the development of the first molecular diagnostic tool for endometrial cancer—marking the beginning of an exciting research path.
In 2017, Dr. Colás took on a leadership role, heading the Group of Biomedical Research in Gynecology at VHIR. Under her guidance, the team conducts translational research in endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer, and endometriosis, driving advancements in diagnosis and precision medicine.
While academic research has been a fascinating journey, Dr. Colás has always been driven by the potential real-world impact of her work on women’s health. Recognizing the significance of her findings in gynecological fluids and endometrial cancer, she sought out strategic partnerships and, in 2021, co-founded MiMARK, where she now serves as Chief Scientific Officer. At MiMARK, she and her team are pioneering gynecological fluids as the next liquid biopsy, with the goal of transforming gynecological diagnostics.

Keynote Speaker & Expert Panellist

Affiliation: DLR Projektträger

• Since 2023; Coordinator of the European Partnership for Personalised Medicine (EP PerMed) and the related Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda SRIA 2023
• 2015-2023; Coordinator of the ERA-Net Cofund action dedicated to cardiovascular diseases
• since 2000: Project management and policy advise for health topics and related funding on the European level and nationally primarily on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
• Co-author of several strategic and policy-oriented publications in different areas of health research, such as the STARS Common Strategy: Regulatory Support and Advice for Academia (2022), the Strategic Research Agenda for Cardiovascular Diseases (SRA-CVD, 2019) or the ICPerMed “Vision Paper”, 2019 and “Action Plan, 2017

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: NOVA National School of Public Health

Inês Fronteira is an academic and public health professional whose career is marked by significant contributions to epidemiology, health policy, and global health. Her academic journey began with a bachelor’s degree in nursing in 2000, followed by a Master’s in Public Health in 2003 and a Ph.D. in International Health, specializing in Health Policies and Development in 2011. In 2022, she obtained her habilitation in Public Health – Epidemiology, at NOVA University.
Currently, she is an associate professor at the National School of Public Health at NOVA University. She has been involved in numerous research projects, including studies on tuberculosis, HIV, and the non-specific effects of vaccines like BCG. Her work often addresses health inequities, particularly in vulnerable populations such as migrants and prisoners. She has also been a key figure in international collaborations, contributing to projects funded by organizations like the European Union and the World Health Organization. Her research has been published in high-impact journals, and she has authored several books and book chapters, further solidifying her reputation as a leading expert in her field.
She has been a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the European Health Management Association, president of the Portuguese Association of Epidemiology and served as an expert for the Portuguese National Health Council. She is a counselor to the National Council of Ethics for Life Sciences and an expert in the Ethics Committee for Clinical Research. Her work has also extended to policy-making, having been an advisor
to the Portuguese Ministry of Health and involved in the development of health policies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: MSD

Since July 2020, she has held the position of Executive Director of Policy & Government Affairs at the pharmaceutical company Merck, Sharp and Dohme de España, S.A.
Since December 2023, she has been Second Vice President of the Spanish Association of Bioenterprises (ASEBIO).
Graduate in Medicine and Surgery and specialist in Oncology with more than 15 years of professional practice at the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona.
Doctor and professor at the University of Barcelona.
 Extensive research experience in cancer biology and metastasis, acquired at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and the Barcelona Science Park.
Training in health management and public-private collaboration at ESADE; more than three years of experience in public management as Care Director in the Servei Català de la Salut, in charge of public procurement and operational planning of care services and as Director of Health Planning in the Department of Health of Catalonia, as responsible for strategic planning.
Several publications in high-impact journals on cancer and metastasis mechanisms.

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: Biocat

PhD in Molecular Biology, MSc in Medical Communication, MA in Diplomacy and International Affairs. Director of Strategic Foresight and International Relations at Biocat, President of the Council of European BioRegions (CEBR), Member of the Board of Directors, European Clusters Alliance (ECA), Member of the Joint Industrial Cooperation Forum, Health Emergency and Preparedness Agency (HERA), EIT Health Innostars mentor, Member of the Expert Committee for AI/Health Program (Government of Catalonia). Member of the Expert Committee for the National Agreement for health System Transformation (Government of Catalonia), 2024. Former R&I Adviser, Government of Catalonia (Ministry of Research and Universities, 2011-2022), National Expert Horizon Europe, Cluster Health Program Committee (2020-2022). Background as a Biomedical Scientist (1987-1999), with Doctorate and several Postdocs in Spain, France and the US. Montse’s interests: Innovation Ecosystems, Impact Assessment, Twin Transition, EU policies, Internationalisation, Gender, Healthcare Challenges.

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: IACS – Health Sciences Institute of Aragon (Spain)

Juan E. Riese is biochemist and holds a MBA degree and a further Master degree in Direction and Management of RDI in Health Sciences.
He was researcher in Experimental Oncology (tumor progression, angiogenesis and metastasis) for 20 years in Berlin (Germany) and Spain successively in public settings and the private sector, where he has held Business Management positions both in Development and in Business Development in biotech companies.
From 2007 to 2022 he was scientific-technical advisor for European projects at the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) and National Contact Point for the Health Framework Programmes and IMI, as well as National Expert in the Delegation of Spain to the respective Health Programme Committees. He was coordinator of the Joint Action JA-CHRODIS on best practices in the management of chronic diseases.
From September 2022, he is European Projects’ Officer at the Aragon Institute of Health Science (IACS) in Saragossa (Spain). Since December 2024, he is WP4 “Implementation of PM in Public Healthcare” lead of the European Partnership on Personalised Medicine EP PerMed.

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: CNIO

Currently Director of Innovation at the National Cancer Research Center in Madrid. Expert in innovation and technology transfer. Participation in the design and negotiation of more than one hundred relevant public-private partnerships, including service contracts, collaboration agreements, and patent and know-how licenses.
Collaboration in the strategic definition of the Andalusian Initiative for Advanced Therapies (IATA). Collaboration in raising funds for spin-offs and for the creation of the largest European public network of pharmaceutical laboratories (GMP) belonging to a single institution for the manufacture of cell, gene, and tissue engineering medicines, and the promotion of 25 clinical trials (3 of them Phase III) with various advanced therapies, positioning Andalusia as an international benchmark in clinical translation in this field.

Expert knowledge of the regulatory framework for advanced therapies as well as the business environment in this field, with participation in numerous institutional and business partnering events.

Expert Panellist

Affiliation: Health Cluster Portugal

Joana Feijó holds a degree in Microbiology from the Catholic University, a master’s degree in Basic and Molecular Biology and a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from ICBAS. Near 20 years of her professional career were spent in the private sector working on business strategy, product development and commercialization in the Healthcare industry. From 2015-18 Joana has been developing a tech start-up on the Tourism area aside with consultancy projects on the Healthcare sector. Joana worked at CRITICAL Group between 2009-2015, where she has passed through different companies: from Critical Health & Oncaring, through Critical Software and Coimbra Genomics. Before joining CRITICAL, Joana has worked 3 years at ALERT Life Sciences Computing, as the Director of Clinical Content and Functional Analysis Dept. During those years, she has worked on the company internationalization to the BR, USA, UK and NL markets. Joana is now part of the Health Cluster Portugal (HCP) Executive team as Business Development Director.

Expert Panellist (online)

Affiliation: Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, VHIO, UVic-UCC

Dr Josep Tabernero currently serves as the Head of the Medical Oncology Department at the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, the Director of the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO) and Professor of Medicine at UVic-UCC.
His research centers on molecular targeted therapies, targeting specific oncoproteins, and novel immunotherapies, advancing and accelerating more effective personalized cancer medicines for patients displaying genetic lesions or pathway dysregulation. Dr Tabernero’s expertise includes predictive markers of response to anti-cancer therapies and innovative preclinical models (patient-derived xenografts and organoids) for studying tumor development. He has also (co) authored nearly 700 peer-reviewed papers with an H-Index of 129 and serves on the Editorial Boards of various top tier journals including Cancer Discovery, Clinical Cancer Research, and Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology.
Dr Tabernero’s contributions as the former President of the European Society for Medical Oncology – ESMO (2018-2019) and a member of esteemed cancer research associations like AACR and ASCO drive advancements in oncology globally. Dr Tabernero is also Chair of Cancer Core Europe (from October 2023) and member of the Board of Directors of the Organisation of European Cancer Institutes (OECI) and has been a member of the Educational and Scientific Committees of ESMO, ASCO, AACR, AACR/NCI/EORTC, ASCO Gastrointestinal, TAT and ESMO-GI meetings.

Expert Panellist (online)

Affiliation: National Health Institute ‘Doutor Ricardo Jorge’

Astrid M. Vicente is a senior researcher in biomedical sciences and public health at the National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge, in Lisbon, Portugal, where she heads the Department of Health Promotion and Non-Communicable Disease Prevention. Astrid Vicente is an expert in Human Genomics, with a strong interest in the translation of knowledge into personalised strategies for diagnostics, medical care and prevention, and in the implementation of genomics in healthcare systems, with a focus on the equitable access to Personalised medicine for all. She served two consecutive terms as Vice-Chair of the International Consortium for Personalised Medicine (ICPerMed), and is currently a member of the Steering Board and leader of the Working Group on Policy and Strategy. She represents the Ministry of Health of Portugal and is a member of the Coordination Group of the European 1+Million Genomes Initiative, and leads the Working Group on Healthcare Implementation. Astrid Vicente coordinated the development of the National Strategy for Genomic Medicine in Portugal.