Manuel Valiente (Zaragoza, 1980) has a degree in Veterinary Medicine (1998-2003, Zaragoza) awarded with the Extraordinary Licensure Award and 2nd Spanish National Licensure Award. With an interest in the Central Nervous System and after a research internship he decided to get a PhD in Neuroscience (Institute of Neuroscience, 2005-2009). In the laboratory of Oscar Marín he developed several projects to understand the principles that govern migration of neuronal precursors needed to establish functional circuits in the adult. His doctoral work produced seven publications in leading journals in the field and was awarded the Extraordinary Doctoral Award. To expand his scientific training but maintaining the nervous system as the main focus of his research, Manuel joined the laboratory of Joan Massagué (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 2010-2014). Manuel was interested on finding critical mediators of brain metastases during the colonization of this organ. His previous experience in techniques used in Neuroscience and knowledge on brain biology allowed him to develop new approaches to answer this question. The most significant contributions during this period were the discovery of the molecular bases of the high inefficiency in the metastatic colonization of the brain and the identification of a cell adhesion molecule critical for vascular co-option. In 2015 Manuel established the Brain Metastasis Group at the CNIO where he leads a team of scientists whose goal is to discover critical aspects of the biology of brain metastasis that can be directed toward the development of new therapeutic opportunities.