Dr.
Fatima Cardoso, MD, MSc, FESMO is a senior consultant in medical
oncology, internationally recognized for her leadership in breast cancer
research, care, and advocacy. Board certified in medical oncology and internal
medicine, she earned her medical degree at the University
of Porto, with fellowships at the
Jules Bordet Institute in Brussels and MD
Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
She served as Assistant Professor at the Jules Bordet Institute and Scientific
Director of the TRANSBIG research network before returning to Portugal in 2010 to establish and direct the
first certified Breast Unit in the country at the Champalimaud Clinical
Center.
Dr.
Cardoso is founder and President of the Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC) Global
Alliance and chair of the ABC International Consensus Guidelines
Conference. Her research spans breast cancer biology, biomarkers, novel
therapies, and clinical trials across phases I–IV. She is also Editor-in-Chief
of The Breast Journal, associate editor of the European Journal of
Cancer, and active in leading professional societies including ESMO, ASCO,
AACR, and EORTC.
Honored
with numerous international awards—including the Order of Santiago da Espada
for Scientific Merit—she has authored over 400 publications and remains a
driving force for innovation, equity, and global collaboration in oncology.
Dr.
Fatima Cardoso has long stood at the forefront of international oncology,
dedicating her career to addressing the challenges of both female and male
breast cancer. As an oncologist and global advocate, she balances clinical
leadership with a deep commitment to collaborative research, ensuring that even
the rarest cancers receive the scientific attention and resources they deserve.
A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
ON ACCESS TO CARE
Her
remarks reflected her internationalist vision: partnerships across
organizations, industries, and borders are essential. For Cardoso, cancer care
equity is a pressing humanitarian issue, and her work consistently seeks to bridge
divides between high-resource and under-resourced nations.
DIAGNOSTICS AND THE MALE BREAST CANCER DEBATE: Dr.
Cardoso also spoke about the diagnostic standards for male breast cancer,
a rare disease that has historically been underserved in both awareness and
research. She emphasized that current ASCO guidelines recommend using
the same diagnostic protocols applied to female patients—principally mammography
and ultrasound, with MRI reserved for specific cases. However, she also
acknowledged the limitations of population-based screening for such a rare
condition, noting that education and awareness remain far more impactful for
early detection.
Her
perspective struck a note of caution: while innovation is essential, the
medical community must remain vigilant against overdiagnosis. Drawing
lessons from decades of breast cancer screening in women, she warned that
detecting cancers too early—or diagnosing in situ carcinomas unlikely to become
life-threatening—can lead to unnecessary treatment and harm. She urged
researchers and clinicians working on male breast cancer not to repeat these
missteps, stressing the importance of balancing vigilance with restraint.
One
of Dr. Cardoso’s major commitments has been the International Male Breast
Cancer Program, a research initiative developed through unprecedented
global collaboration. Run under the umbrella of
the Breast International Group (BIG) in Europe
and the National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) in the US North American
intergroup and coordinated by European
Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) and the Translational
Breast Cancer Research Consortium (TBCRC), the program has produced the
largest body of research ever assembled on male breast cancer.
The
program’s structure included three pillars:
- Retrospective
studies and publications that laid a foundation of clinical
knowledge.
- An
international registry that successfully enrolled over 500 men—far
surpassing the initial target of 200 patients in two years—demonstrating
the feasibility of large-scale research in this rare cancer.
- A prospective
clinical trial,
intended to test targeted therapies, particularly drugs addressing the
androgen receptor pathway.
Unfortunately,
funding constraints have placed the program at risk. Cardoso noted that
pharmaceutical companies, ultimately withdrew support from the most advanced
therapeutic trial. Despite the proven ability to gather sufficient patient
numbers, industry reluctance to invest in rare diseases has left the program
struggling for survival.
She
described the funding crisis faced by international collaborations, pointing to
the restrictive legal environment in the United States that increasingly
limits the flow of donations to non-U.S. research partners. Such restrictions,
she warned, could jeopardize multinational studies that depend on pooling data
across borders to achieve meaningful results.
Cardoso
also underscored the heavy reliance on industry funding in oncology research,
acknowledging the conflicts and limitations that arise when commercial
interests dictate which studies receive support. For diseases with little
market potential, such as male breast cancer, the result is often stagnation.
Her appeal is clear: the research community must diversify funding sources,
cultivate individual donors, and build coalitions to ensure that scientific
progress is not stifled
by market forces
ADVOCACY BEYOND THE LABORATORY: Beyond
her scientific work, Dr. Cardoso is also President of the Advanced Breast
Cancer (ABC) Global Alliance, which focuses on metastatic breast cancer
worldwide. This role reflects her capacity to lead not only clinical trials and
registries but also advocacy and policy-oriented initiatives.
A
Personal World Tied to Her Work: Amid
discussions of policy, data, and funding, Dr. Cardoso shared glimpses of her
personal roots. Though born in Africa, she regards Porto, Portugal,
as her true home—the city where she trained and became a physician. Today, she
is based in Lisbon, but her heart remains
closely tied to Porto. This grounding in both
international and local contexts reflects her identity as a physician who
thinks globally while remaining deeply connected to her origins.
A Champion for Patients Often Overlooked: Dr.
Fatima Cardoso’s professional life embodies the tension between rare disease
advocacy and the practicalities of modern oncology. Her efforts reveal a
doctor’s dual role as both healer and activist: ensuring that patients receive
the best evidence-based care today while also fighting to secure the research
and funding needed to transform treatment tomorrow.
Whether
advancing metastatic breast cancer advocacy through the ABC Global Alliance, or
sustaining the fragile yet groundbreaking International Male Breast Cancer Program,
Dr. Cardoso continues to challenge the systemic barriers that leave vulnerable
patients underserved.
Her
message is both sobering and inspiring. The world has the tools, knowledge, and
networks to make meaningful progress. What remains is the collective
will—across governments, industries, and advocacy groups—to ensure that no
patient, whether a woman with metastatic disease or a man with breast cancer,
is left behind.
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A Tireless Heart for Change
In the fight against breast cancer—whether in women or men—few leaders embody the courage, vision, and unwavering heart for advocacy as profoundly as
Dr. Fatima Cardoso. From the first time I met her, it was clear that she carried more than the weight of scientific knowledge; she carried the voices of patients, families, and underserved communities who too often remain unheard.
Dr. Cardoso has never been content to limit her work to the laboratory or the lecture hall. She understands that science without advocacy is only half the battle. With courage and clarity, she has repeatedly stepped into arenas where policies are written, funding is debated, and inequities threaten to silence progress. She has spoken for patients in low- and middle-income countries who lack access to medicines. She has fought for international collaboration in rare diseases like male breast cancer, even when industry and politics put obstacles in her path. And she has done it all with grace, persistence, and the quiet but undeniable power of conviction.
What sets Dr. Cardoso apart is not only her brilliance as a clinician and researcher, but her tireless heart. She has built bridges across continents, uniting networks of physicians and advocates to pursue solutions that one country alone could never achieve. She has reminded us, time and again, that behind every statistic is a life worth saving—and that our responsibility is to push forward until better treatments, fairer access, and greater awareness are realities for all.
As President of the ABC Global Alliance and as a leader of the International Male Breast Cancer Program, she has given form to hope in spaces where many once felt forgotten. She has proven that advocacy from the clinical stage is not only possible, but essential.
To me, and to the countless others inspired by her, Dr. Cardoso represents the rare blend of scientific excellence and human compassion that defines true leadership. Her courage fuels our mission. Her vision lights our path. And her heart ensures that no patient—woman or man—will be left behind.
— Cheri Ambrose, Male Breast Cancer Global Alliance
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Elevating Oncology Through Vision
In more than forty years of work in cancer diagnostics, I have witnessed an extraordinary evolution in our field. From the early days of limited imaging options to today’s sophisticated landscape of precision diagnostics and targeted therapies, progress has always depended on those rare individuals who combine clinical excellence with visionary leadership.
Dr. Fatima Cardoso is one of those rare leaders.
What distinguishes Dr. Cardoso is her ability to stand at the intersection of science, patient care, and international collaboration. She understands that breast cancer—whether in men or women—cannot be addressed in silos. It requires a network of minds, data, and resources spanning across borders. Her work with the Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC) Global Alliance and the International Male Breast Cancer Program exemplifies this truth. These initiatives have provided the kind of global infrastructure that oncology desperately needs if we are to make meaningful advances against rare and neglected cancers.
As a diagnostician, I know that every patient represents both an individual battle and a piece of a larger puzzle. Dr. Cardoso has repeatedly reminded the medical community that research must serve both ends: it must offer better solutions to the patient in front of us, while also building the evidence and systems that will guide the care of thousands more. Her insistence on equity and accessibility speaks directly to the ethical responsibilities we face as physicians.
I have also seen the challenges: funding gaps, industry hesitation to invest in rare cancers, and policy frameworks that too often slow innovation rather than enable it. Yet Dr. Cardoso continues to push forward. Her persistence reflects the kind of resilience our profession requires if we are to move beyond incremental progress and toward transformative change.
The medical community benefits immeasurably from her leadership. Her vision demonstrates what oncology should strive to be: rigorous in science, uncompromising in compassion, and committed to international cooperation. As someone who has spent decades in this field, I can say without hesitation that we need more voices like Dr. Cardoso’s—and more of her kind of care—on the global stage.
— Robert L. Bard, MD, Diagnostic Imaging Specialist
