Dr. Līga Bērziņa

Dr. Līga Bērziņa is a medical oncologist at Riga East Clinical University Hospital — Latvia's oncology center of excellence affiliated with Riga Stradins University. With 15 years of clinical experience, she has developed expertise in breast and thoracic oncology and immunotherapy.

She completed an advanced oncology fellowship at the Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden, one of the Nordic region's leading cancer centers. Sweden's strong oncology research tradition and close Nordic-Baltic ties made Uppsala a natural training destination, and Dr. Bērziņa brought Scandinavian oncology protocols back to Latvian practice.

She is an active ESMO member and participates in Baltic oncology research networks. She has been involved in clinical trial programs at Riga East, giving Latvian patients access to investigational therapies. She is committed to implementing molecular profiling-guided treatment and to advancing precision oncology in Latvia.

Dr. Bērziņa is known for her thoroughness, her evidence-based approach, and her clear patient communication in Latvian, Russian, and English.

Dr. Bērziņa received her MD from Riga Stradins University Faculty of Medicine in 2006. She completed her oncology residency at Riga East Clinical University Hospital and undertook an advanced oncology fellowship at Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden (2011–2012). Her PhD from Riga Stradins University in 2015 focused on immunotherapy biomarkers in non-small cell lung cancer. She is an ESMO member and is certified by the Latvian Medical Association in clinical oncology.

Dr. Bērziņa's primary clinical focus is breast and lung oncology. She designs and administers chemotherapy, targeted therapy (HER2-directed agents, EGFR/ALK inhibitors for lung cancer, CDK4/6 inhibitors for breast cancer), and immune checkpoint inhibitor regimens. She integrates NGS molecular profiling and PD-L1 testing into treatment planning. She also treats colorectal, ovarian cancer, and melanoma and participates in clinical trial protocols. She manages the multidisciplinary tumor board reviews at Riga East.

Dr. Bērziņa has published over 15 peer-reviewed articles in journals including Lung Cancer, the European Journal of Cancer, and the ESMO Open journal. Her research focuses on PD-L1 and TMB as immunotherapy predictive biomarkers in lung cancer, breast cancer molecular subtype distribution and outcomes in the Latvian population, and the practical challenges of implementing precision oncology — including next-generation sequencing tissue panels — in Baltic healthcare systems. She collaborates with oncologists at Karolinska University Hospital in Sweden and participates in Baltic and Nordic oncology research consortia. She has contributed to international cancer registry data through the ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines collaboration.

Dr. Bērziņa speaks Latvian, Russian, and English and is experienced in providing oncology second opinions and treatment plans to international patients. Riga East Clinical University Hospital provides English and Russian-language consultation reports through its international patient service, and assists with appointment coordination, document translation, and medical visa support.

Video consultations are available for second opinions on lung cancer and breast cancer diagnosis and treatment planning, enabling patients from across Europe to share pathology results, molecular profiling reports, and imaging for review without traveling to Riga. Latvia's EU membership ensures access to all EMA-approved oncology therapies — including checkpoint inhibitors, CDK4/6 inhibitors, and antibody-drug conjugates — at Baltic pricing levels substantially lower than Western European equivalents.

Dr. Bērziņa received the Latvian Society of Oncology Young Investigator Award in 2016, recognizing her early-career research contributions to lung cancer biomarker science. She was formally recognized by Riga East Clinical University Hospital for her leadership in establishing the institution's lung cancer molecular profiling program — the first systematic NGS-based tumor profiling service in the Latvian public oncology system.

She has received multiple ESMO travel grants enabling her to present research findings at the ESMO Annual Congress in Barcelona and Madrid. She is a faculty presenter at Baltic oncology CME meetings and serves on the Latvian Society of Oncology's clinical guidelines committee for thoracic oncology.