About me

Introduction

I am a dermatologist and researcher specialising primarily in psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases. My work combines the care of patients from Spain and other countries, clinical research and the leadership of specialised programmes. I also devote a significant part of my professional activity to teaching and to speaking at national and international conferences, courses and scientific meetings.

Throughout my career, I have focused my clinical practice, research and teaching on a specific objective: to understand these diseases more fully in order to manage them with greater precision, depth and personalisation. This broad perspective allows me to assess not only the visible manifestations on the skin, but also comorbidities, the systemic impact of the disease, advanced treatments and the areas of research that are transforming their management.

I work at Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal and Grupo Pedro Jaén, where I lead a highly specialised unit dedicated to psoriasis and inflammatory skin diseases. I am General Director of ICMR — International Center for Medical Research —, the dermatology research centre of Fundación Pedro Jaén, where we conduct and promote studies and clinical trials in psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases. In addition, I teach at the Faculty of Medicine of Universidad Francisco de Vitoria.

Psoriasis at the centre of my career

Psoriasis has been central to both my clinical and research career. My dedication to this disease stems from the need to provide more specialised care for patients who, in many cases, require more than a standard treatment or a short-term response to an individual flare-up.

Over time, this focus has allowed me to develop an approach based on a high degree of specialisation, individual assessment and careful follow-up of each case, always with the conviction that good dermatological care requires in-depth knowledge, sound clinical judgement and a broad understanding of the patient.

A comprehensive view of psoriasis

My approach is based on a clear principle: psoriasis cannot be understood solely as a skin disease.

For many patients, its impact extends beyond visible lesions and requires attention to other factors that may influence disease progression, quality of life and general health. For this reason, I place particular importance on comprehensive disease assessment, associated comorbidities and each patient’s individual circumstances.

This perspective allows me to make more precise therapeutic decisions and develop a management strategy that better reflects the clinical reality of each patient.

I apply the same approach to other immune-mediated skin diseases, including atopic dermatitis and hidradenitis suppurativa, because I believe that this comprehensive perspective is also essential to managing these conditions with greater precision.

Research as part of my clinical practice

Research is not a secondary part of my career. It is an essential part of how I practise medicine.

At Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal, I have developed clinical and research activity focused on psoriasis, its comorbidities and the comprehensive assessment of patients. In parallel, through ICMR I participate in research projects and clinical trials that allow me to remain closely connected with relevant advances in psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases.

This integration of clinical care and research enables me to work from an up-to-date scientific perspective and reinforces the rigour with which I assess each case and make clinical decisions.

Dr Álvaro González Cantero

Medical registration number: 454505859

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Mujer y Psoriasis | AEDV | Colegio de Médicos de Madrid

Mount Sinai | Dr. Álvaro González Cantero

5º Reunión Nacional de Ecografía Cutánea

Premio Prof. García Pérez a la Mejor Comunicación Oral

Directo Cantabria Labs y Rafa Nadal l Lo Importante, La Salud.

Current positions and activity

I currently combine clinical, research and teaching activities across complementary areas, all focused on the study and management of psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases.

- Director of the Psoriasis and Inflammatory Skin Diseases Unit at Grupo Pedro Jaén

- Consultant Dermatologist, Department of Dermatology, Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal.

- Scientific Director of the International Center for Medical Research (ICMR).

- Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria.

- Councilor, International Psoriasis Council.

I also maintain regular contact with leading dermatologists and psoriasis researchers from different countries through scientific collaborations, conferences and participation in international scientific societies. This continuous exchange of knowledge is an essential part of how I understand medicine: sharing knowledge and continuing to learn in order to provide each patient with care that is more precise, more up to date and closely connected with meaningful advances in the specialty.

International scientific activity and expert network

Scientific activity is an essential part of my career and includes continuous involvement in conferences, symposia, expert meetings, publications and research projects related to psoriasis, its comorbidities, systemic inflammation and other inflammatory skin diseases.

An important part of this activity involves delivering lectures and speaking at scientific forums in different countries. Over the years, I have shared knowledge at meetings held in the United States, Colombia, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates and other international settings. This allows me to exchange experience with leading dermatologists and researchers and to maintain a broad, rigorous and up-to-date perspective on the disease.

I am also a member of national and international scientific societies and networks related to dermatology and, in particular, psoriasis, including the International Psoriasis Council, the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, the National Psoriasis Foundation and other specialist organisations.

This international dimension of my career is not simply a matter of academic profile. It reflects an approach to medicine based on research, teaching, sharing knowledge and remaining in direct contact with meaningful advances in the specialty so that this experience can be applied to everyday clinical practice.

Teaching and patient education

I am a professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, where I have the opportunity to share both the knowledge we continue to develop and an approach to medicine that places the individual patient at its centre.

Alongside clinical care, research and teaching, I consider it essential to provide patients with rigorous, clear and useful information about their condition.

With this aim, I lead projects such as The Psoriasis Revolution, an initiative designed to provide patients with accessible information about relevant advances, treatments and knowledge relating to psoriasis and to support a more informed understanding of the disease.

I see patient education as a natural extension of clinical care: helping patients understand their disease is also part of caring for them.

Scientific societies and specialist forums

Membership of national and international scientific societies allows me to remain closely connected with developments in medical knowledge, collaborate with other specialists and maintain a high level of scientific currency in my clinical practice.

International Psoriasis Council
Psoriasis Working Group of the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (AEDV)
Epidemiology and Health Promotion Group of the AEDV
EADV (European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology)
EADV Psoriasis Task Force
National Psoriasis Foundation
European Society of Cardiology
GRAPPA
European Rare and Severe Psoriasis Expert Network
CILAD

ORCID and scientific profiles

I believe scientific activity should be accessible, verifiable and easy to consult. This section therefore brings together my main academic profiles and provides access to the dedicated research and teaching page, where further details of my scientific activity are available.

Scientific profiles
ORCID: 0000-0001-8060-4784
Google Scholar
PubMed
Actividad investigadora y académica completa

My research activity has resulted in publications in leading national and international journals including The Lancet, JAMA Dermatology, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Journal of Investigative Dermatology, Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, British Journal of Dermatology o PLOS One.

International training and the influence of leading specialists

My interest in psoriasis led me to focus my training on this field from an early stage. I completed my doctoral thesis on psoriasis and further developed my professional experience through placements at two leading centres in the United States: Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas and the University of Pennsylvania.

These experiences helped consolidate an approach to dermatology based on a high degree of specialisation, scientific rigour and the integration of clinical practice and research — principles that continue to define my work today.

A significant part of my approach to psoriasis has developed through learning from internationally recognised specialists in the disease and through ongoing contact with professionals who have had an important influence on my clinical and research career.

During my training in the United States, I had the opportunity to work with Dr Alan Menter at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas and to undertake a second placement with Dr Joel Gelfand at the Psoriasis Center at the University of Pennsylvania. From both, I learnt not only how to develop research projects focused on a specific disease, but also an approach to patient care based on clinical precision, scientific excellence and a genuine understanding of patients’ needs.

Throughout my career, professional relationships with leading specialists in other fields closely connected with psoriasis and its systemic impact have also been particularly valuable. In this respect, Dr Valentín Fuster has been an important source of inspiration for me, both because of his approach to medicine and his commitment to care aimed at achieving meaningful improvements in patients’ health.

When I returned to Spain, this experience helped me consolidate a model in which clinical practice and research develop alongside one another. At Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal, I have been able to pursue this work through my own research programme and international collaborations. Subsequently, with the support of Dr Pedro Jaén, we worked to bring this comprehensive model of care into private clinical practice at Grupo Pedro Jaén.

Professional career

My professional career has developed through a combination of strong clinical training, a high degree of specialisation in psoriasis, active research and an increasingly comprehensive view of inflammatory skin diseases. These are some of the milestones that best explain the development of my current approach.

2008–2014