He was born in Córdoba, Argentina in 1972; studied at the National University of Córdoba, graduating from the medical school in 1996. In 1998 he began his studies at the University of Milan, Italy. He got a scholarship for a project in Breast Cancer with the prestigious Dr. Luca Gianni, in one of the European reference centers for cancer, the National Cancer Institute of Milan. He worked for more than six years with him, dealing with Breast Cancer, Head and Neck Tumors, Sarcomas and Rare Tumors. He trained with Drs. Lisa Licitra and Paolo Casali, international experts in both areas. During this period he dealt with caring and Phase I Research Protocols, under the direction of Prof. Gianni. Obtained the European Oncology Board certification in 2003 with a thesis based on a Phase I trial with the combination of a new taxane and doxorubicin in Breast Cancer. Dr. Rolfo is also a Doctor of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Catania, Italy, with a thesis based on a Phase Ib trial and pharmacokinetics of BMS 184476 and anthracyclines in solid tumors. In 2004 he moved to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, where he worked in the Oncology Unit of the Clinica Rotger until September 2012.
It is here where he began his work in the Spanish Group for Lung Cancer, under the direction of Professor Rafael Rosell, actively involved in studies of molecular biology and clinical research in lung cancer. In 2009 obtained the PhD degree and Doctor Europaeus in Clinical and Experimental Oncology Research with cum laude from the University of Palermo, Italy, for the thesis: The relationship between metabolic activity (SUV max) by 18-FDG PET and histology, stage, EGFR mutations and survival in patients with NSCLC, under the direction of Professor Antonio Russo and Professor Rafael Rosell.
Since October 2012 is senior staff member in the Department of Oncology as associate Professor at the University Hospital Antwerp, Antwerp University in Belgium, headed by Professor Marc Peeters . Currently he is Head of the Phase I – Early Clinical Trials Unit, and Director of the Clinical Trails Management Program. He is focused on Clinical Research, Drug Development and Resistance.
He is actively working in a research program of Liquid Biopsies in Lung Cancer, specifically in exosomes isolation and circulating tumor DNA.
He completed his training in organization in Phase I at Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (Visiting Professor Program) with Prof. David Hong. Dr. Rolfo is the author of numerous papers published in various journals including New England Journal of Medicine, Annals of Oncology, Lancet Oncology, Oncotarget, Translational oncology, Journal of Clinical Oncology, among others. It is also a speaker at national and international forums Lung Cancer.
Professor Rolfo is part of the working group of the ETOP mesothelioma (European Platform Thoracic Oncology), led by Prof. Rolf Stahel. He was also member of the membership Board of IALSC (International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer) and currently is a member in the Educational Committee (IALSC) and from 2016 he is part of Membership Committe at ESMO. He is member of prestigious Societies including AACR, BACR, EACR, and ASCO.
He served as a Scientific Board member of the Drug Development Group for ESMO meetings in 2016 and 2018, and is currently appointed as a Scientific Board Committee member at the European School of Oncology (ESO) for 2017-2019 period.
Prof. Rolfo also obtained the Master degree in Business Health Administration by Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain in 2010.
In February 2011 he was appointed as visiting professor in Medical Oncology by the Molecular and Clinical Genetic Oncology Unit at the Interdepartmental Center of Research in Clinical Oncology, School of Medicine, University of Palermo (Italy).
In addition, he has teaching duties at the University of the Balearic Islands. From 2014, he has been a guest Professor at Palermo University and Director of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics Fellowship in Drug Development: Clinical and Experimental, at Antwerp University Hospital, Belgium. He is also involved in ESMO and IASLC education projects (ESMO SLACOM workshop in Clinical Trials and Clinical Research in Lung Cancer respectively) and chair of EORTC PAMM Group in Antwerp on February 2016. Currently, Professor Rolfo is Deputy Editor and Section Editor for Investigational Therapeutics in Critical Reviews in Oncology Hematology, Section Editor of Translational Research at the Belgian Journal of Medical Oncology and on the editorial team at the ESMO Open Journal Cancer Horizons, and in Lung Cancer (Elsevier)