Prof. Dr. Feridun ACAR

While studying at university, every prospective physician has the opportunity to see all branches as a student. The block on the brain and nervous system is usually not liked by medical students, but I was very impressed by the nervous system and its organization and splendor.

During my internship, I attended the surgeries of my late professor Prof. Dr. Tuncalp Özgen and I fell in love with neurosurgery at first sight. In our branch, there is science, there is aesthetics, there are the highest and most difficult points of surgery, and there is an artistic aspect. When I finished school, I had completed my US board exams and was accepted to the general surgery program in the US, but my heart was in neurosurgery. When I won neurosurgery in the exam, I gave up going to America and started my residency and today I am in my 22nd year in the profession, every day I say that I am glad I became a neurosurgeon.

The brain is an incredible organ, a miracle of the universe. Imagine that in a small organ there are millions of functional cells and a terribly sophisticated network created by their connections. The brain works with very complex mechanisms and the system is very sensitive. There are many structural and functional problems in this system, and they appear as diseases in different forms.

Some of these diseases require surgical treatments, and this is where we come in. The brain has a complex anatomy and functional areas are intertwined on millimeter scales. We learn all this anatomy, see its structure in that person with modern imaging methods and plan our surgeries in a way that does not damage sensitive areas with gentle touches.

We perform our surgeries using high technology and surgical microscopes. Just like being a fighter pilot, our work is risky, sensitive and requires focus and determination.

I perform brain surgeries with love. I most frequently perform functional surgeries such as brain tumors, vascular problems such as aneurysms and AVMs, Parkinson’s and epilepsy.

I also established and operated the Gamma Knife unit at the university 3 years ago. In summary, all major brain-related surgeries constitute my daily routine.

This intense tempo keeps me fit and happy. Every morning I wake up excited and can’t wait to go to the operating room, and when the surgeries are over, I feel great satisfaction and happiness.

Neurosurgery will be the popular profession of the next 100 years. Research in the neurosciences gets the biggest funding. There are so many things we don’t know about the nervous system. There will be groundbreaking developments both in the working mechanisms of the brain and in treatments. New treatments will be put into practice with nano technology and genetic engineering, there will be very good developments, and we, as neurosurgeons, will be among the leading groups.

Life is a never-ending project, and when projects end, so does vertebrae. In the institution where I am currently working, we are establishing a very strong neurosurgery staff and we have brought the highest technology. We crown this with scientific studies. We have the mission of a department in the format of an institute, where the highest technology and surgical practices are updated.

As the leading clinic in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions, we aim to treat the most complex diseases in the best way. As in the world, high technology is very expensive in our country. This technology is used extensively in neurosurgery. It is easier to buy and renew these technologies in the private sector.

We will continue to treat our patients by using and updating the highest technology.