Ricardo Rodrigues

Biography

My name is Ricardo Miguel dos Santos Rodrigues, graduated member number 3859 of the Biologists' Order, and SPEDM number 1048. I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Biology, in the field of Molecular Biology and Genetics, in 2019, in the Faculty of Sciences of Lisbon (FCUL), where I also obtained a Master’s degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics in 2022. Currently I am a PhD student in the doctoral program in Health Sciences of NOVA Medical School | Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Universidade NOVA de Lisboa. I developed a Master’s dissertation entitled, "Study of molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma aggressiveness and response to therapy", which was supervised by Dr. Branca Cavaco, Principal Investigator of the Molecular Endocrinology Group, and co-supervised by Dr. Tiago Nunes da Silva, Endocrinologist and Researcher, held at Unidade de Investigação em Patobiologia Molecular (UIPM), at Instituto Português de Oncologia de Lisboa Francisco Gentil (IPOLFG). Aggressive thyroid cancer, specially anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) is the rarest form of thyroid cancer, but it is also the most aggressive and fatal form. My Master´s project aimed to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in ATC aggressiveness, and response/resistance to therapy, since these mechanisms are still poorly clarified. Throughout the project, I acquired a considerable theoretical knowledge, and laboratorial skills in molecular and cellular Biology, and particularly in the Oncobiology field. I am developing specific aspects of the above mentioned research, in the same group and I am currently PhD student in Health Sciences in NOVA medical School, entitled "Targeted therapy in aggressive thyroid cancer - unravelling novel resistance mechanisms, predictive biomarkers and therapeutic targets" Besides this scientific passion for cancer research, I have played soccer since I was eight years old, which allowed me to improve companionship, team effort, team trust, and commitment, which, in my opinion, are also important characteristics in a researcher.