Sara García Alonso (born 1989) is a Spanish cancer researcher and reserve ESA astronaut. Since 2019, she has been a postdoctoral researcher at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre. In 2022, she was chosen as a reserve astronaut in the European Astronaut Corps.

Education and academic career

García attended University of León, where she earned a bachelor's degree in

biotechnology Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field that involves the integration of natural sciences and Engineering Science, engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms and parts thereof for products and services. Specialists ...

in 2012 and a master's degree in biomedical and biological research in 2013. As a doctoral candidate at

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca () is a public university, public research university in Salamanca, Spain. Founded in 1218 by Alfonso IX of León, King Alfonso IX, it is the oldest university in the Hispanic world and the fourth oldest in the ...

, García conducted research on cancer medicine as a university research assistant for the

Spanish National Research Council The Spanish National Research Council (, CSIC) is the largest public institution dedicated to research in Spain and the third largest in Europe. Its main objective is to develop and promote research that will help bring about scientific and techn ...

. She earned a doctorate ''cum laude'' in the nuclear biology of cancer and translational medicine in the university's in 2018, advised by Atanasio Pandiella Alonso. Her doctoral dissertation focused on mechanisms of resistance to antibody-drug conjugates in

ErbB The ErbB family of proteins contains four receptor tyrosine kinases, structurally related to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), its first discovered member. In humans, the family includes Her1 (EGFR, ErbB1), Her2 ( ErbB2), Her3 (ErbB ...

receptors and it won her the university's Outstanding Doctorate Award the following year. Since 2019, she has been working as a postdoctoral researcher on

drug discovery In the fields of medicine, biotechnology, and pharmacology, drug discovery is the process by which new candidate medications are discovered. Historically, drugs were discovered by identifying the active ingredient from traditional remedies or ...

and experimental oncology at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre, where she has led a project to discover drugs for

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

and

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

in the laboratory of Mariano Barbacid. Her research has focused on RAF1 selective degraders as a therapeutic target, in order to combat certain forms of cancers. She participated in a 6-month training programme at IE Business School, in Madrid, in 2021. She has volunteered for the , a nonprofit organisation.

Astronaut career

The

European Space Agency The European Space Agency (ESA) is a 23-member International organization, international organization devoted to space exploration. With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,547 people globally as of 2023, ESA was founded in 1975 ...

(ESA) selected García as a reserve astronaut for the 2022 selection of astronauts of the European Astronaut Corps. García and fellow astronaut candidate Pablo Álvarez Fernández, both natives of

León, Spain León (; ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the province of León, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León, in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. It has a population of 124,303 (2019), ...

, are the first Spaniards selected by the ESA since Pedro Duque joined the European Astronaut Corps in 1992. They were selected from more than 22,500 candidates across Europe. As a reserve astronaut, García will continue her current job, and will begin training if found to be an ideal candidate for a future space mission.

Personal life

García was born in León, Spain, in 1989. In addition to her biomedical research, she has worked as a

personal trainer A personal trainer is an individual who creates and delivers safe and effective exercise programs for healthy individuals and groups, or those with medical clearance to exercise. They motivate clients by collaborating to set goals, providing m ...

and a nutrition coach.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:García Alonso, Sara Living people 1989 births 21st-century Spanish scientists 21st-century Spanish women 21st-century Spanish women scientists People from León, Spain Cancer researchers Spanish biologists Molecular biologists Spanish astronauts Women astronauts University of Salamanca alumni European Space Agency personnel Spanish women academics Women molecular biologists