Dr. Zineb Benali Cherif

Dr. Zineb Benali Cherif is a senior medical oncologist at the Institut National d'Oncologie (INO) in Rabat — Morocco's national cancer centre and the country's leading oncology institution. With 18 years of practice in medical oncology, she is among the most experienced cancer physicians in Morocco, providing systemic treatment for patients with a wide range of solid tumours and haematological malignancies.

Her training at the Institut Gustave Roussy in Villejuif, France — one of the world's foremost comprehensive cancer centres — gave Dr. Benali Cherif exposure to a very high volume and diversity of oncological cases, including cutting-edge clinical trials and the latest targeted and immunotherapeutic approaches to cancer treatment. She returned to Morocco with a command of contemporary oncology that she has applied across her subsequent career at the INO, where she participates in the institution's multidisciplinary tumour boards and leads the systemic treatment planning for some of the most complex cancer cases referred from across Morocco and sub-Saharan Africa.

Dr. Benali Cherif is one of the few Moroccan oncologists with membership of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), reflecting her engagement with the highest tier of international oncology practice. She is particularly known for her work in breast cancer — Morocco's most prevalent cancer in women — where she brings both scientific depth and sensitivity to the clinical challenges faced by patients and their families.

Dr. Benali Cherif completed her Doctorat en Médecine at the Faculté de Médecine et de Pharmacie of the Université Mohammed V in Rabat — Morocco's oldest and most prestigious university. She subsequently trained as a specialist in medical oncology within the same faculty, completing a DES (Diplôme d'Etudes Spécialisées) in Medical Oncology that provided structured exposure to systemic cancer therapy, oncological emergencies, and the principles of clinical research.

Following her DES, Dr. Benali Cherif was selected for a competitive fellowship in medical oncology at the Institut Gustave Roussy (IGR) in Villejuif — regarded alongside Memorial Sloan Kettering and MD Anderson as one of the three most important cancer centres in the world. Her fellowship at IGR immersed her in a programme where early-phase clinical trials, biomarker-driven precision oncology, and multidisciplinary tumour boards form the daily fabric of oncological practice. She gained hands-on experience with HER2-targeted therapies, CDK4/6 inhibitors, PARP inhibitors, and checkpoint immunotherapy across multiple tumour types.

Since returning to Morocco, she has maintained active membership in ESMO and regularly attends its annual congress and educational events, ensuring that her practice remains aligned with the most current European clinical oncology guidelines.

Dr. Benali Cherif's clinical practice spans the full scope of medical oncology, with particular depth in breast cancer and gastrointestinal malignancies. In breast oncology, she manages patients from initial staging through to metastatic disease, applying current guidelines for HER2-positive breast cancer (trastuzumab, pertuzumab, T-DM1), hormone receptor-positive disease (CDK4/6 inhibitors, fulvestrant), and triple-negative breast cancer (chemotherapy, immunotherapy with pembrolizumab, PARP inhibitors where germline BRCA mutation is present). She participates in the INO's breast multidisciplinary tumour board, contributing the medical oncology perspective to treatment planning alongside surgical oncology and radiation oncology colleagues.

In colorectal cancer, she designs and supervises systemic therapy protocols including FOLFOX, FOLFIRI, and FOLFOXIRI combinations, with bevacizumab or anti-EGFR agents (cetuximab, panitumumab) based on RAS/BRAF mutational status — a precision oncology framework she helped introduce to the INO's clinical practice. For lung cancer, she manages the rapidly evolving landscape of EGFR-targeted therapy, ALK inhibitors, and PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy.

Dr. Benali Cherif has been the INO's principal investigator for several ESMO-endorsed clinical trials, providing patients in Morocco with access to investigational therapies not otherwise available in the country. Supportive oncology — including antiemetic management, growth factor support, and palliative systemic therapy — is a valued part of her practice philosophy.

Dr. Benali Cherif has an active research profile within the INO's academic oncology unit. She has been involved in the analysis and publication of Moroccan cancer epidemiology data — including the INO's registry of breast cancer presentations and treatment outcomes — which has contributed to a better understanding of the clinical and biological characteristics of Moroccan breast cancer patients relative to European and sub-Saharan African cohorts.

She has participated as a site investigator in international clinical trials, including ESMO-endorsed studies of new systemic agents in breast and colorectal cancer. Her clinical trial experience brings methodological rigour to her everyday oncology practice and ensures INO patients have access to investigational treatments. She has presented research at the ESMO annual congress and at the annual meetings of the Société Marocaine d'Oncologie, and has been co-author on peer-reviewed publications in international oncology journals. She is a contributor to the SMO's national clinical practice guidelines for breast cancer systemic therapy, helping shape standards of care across Morocco's public oncology network.

The Institut National d'Oncologie is Morocco's reference cancer centre and has well-established experience receiving patients from across sub-Saharan Africa — particularly Francophone West and Central African countries where advanced oncological services are limited. Dr. Benali Cherif has managed cancer patients from Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, and other countries who travel to Rabat for systemic treatment unavailable in their home countries.

She conducts consultations in Arabic, French, and English and can provide written second-opinion reports and treatment summaries in any of these languages. For patients considering care at the INO, she advises that a multidisciplinary tumour board review is a central feature of the institution's approach — patients will typically meet with medical oncology, surgical oncology, and radiation oncology specialists before a treatment plan is finalised. This represents a significant advantage over single-specialist consultations available in some other settings.

For Moroccan diaspora patients in Europe who are considering returning to Morocco for oncology care, Dr. Benali Cherif can review prior treatment records, pathology reports, and imaging remotely to provide a preliminary opinion on whether INO treatment is appropriate and what systemic therapy options are available. Rabat is served by an international airport with connections across Europe, West Africa, and the Gulf.

Dr. Benali Cherif is one of a small cohort of Moroccan medical oncologists who hold membership of the European Society for Medical Oncology — a recognition of the international standard of her oncological practice and research engagement. She has been acknowledged by the Société Marocaine d'Oncologie for her contributions to clinical guideline development and to the introduction of precision oncology approaches at the INO.

Her role as a principal investigator on international clinical trials — bringing access to investigational therapies to Moroccan cancer patients — is regarded as a distinctive contribution to the INO's academic standing. She has been recognised by the INO's academic leadership for her work in cancer registry data analysis and for her teaching contributions to the oncology residency programme, where she supervises DES residents in the design and delivery of systemic anticancer therapy. She is one of the most visible female specialists in Moroccan oncology, serving as a professional role model for women pursuing specialist careers in medicine in Morocco.