Prof. Bulent Unal

1. Prof. Bulent Unal Professional summary

Prof. Bulent Unal is an experienced and highly skilled specialist in organ transplantation, with over 28 years of experience in the field. He has performed over 3,200 liver transplant surgeries, demonstrating exceptional expertise in liver transplantation, as well as in oncological surgery, and gastrointestinal and endocrine surgeries.

2. Areas of Expertise

• Transplantation Surgery: Living-donor liver transplantation, surgical innovations, and clinical outcomes
• Breast Surgery & Oncology: Sentinel lymph node biopsy, ductoscopy, lobular carcinoma in situ, and predictive models for axillary lymph node metastasis.
• Colorectal Surgery: Prognostic and relapse factors in colorectal cancer, laparoscopic and open surgical techniques.
• Hepatobiliary & Pancreatic Surgery: Liver transplantation, biliary complications, and approaches to the treatment of pancreatitis.
• Endocrine Surgery: Thyroid disorders, hyperthyroidism, and outcomes of thyroidectomy.
• Gastrointestinal Surgery: Perforated peptic ulcers, diaphragmatic ruptures, and gastric cancer screening in liver transplant recipients
• Oncologic Surgery Research: Tumor markers, VEGF and IGF pathways, inflammatory markers, and postoperative complications

3. Education

• 2010: University of Giessen-Marburg, Germany Training in Transplantation and Oncologic Surgery.
• 2008: Magee-Womens Hospital, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, USA, NCI Short-Term Scientist.
• 2012: İnönü University Faculty of Medicine Subspecialty in Surgical Oncology.
• 2001: Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital Specialization in General Surgery.
• 1996: Çukurova University School of Medicine.

4. Professional experience

• Present: Istanbul Florence Nightingale Hospital Professor & Head of Department, General Surgery and Surgical Oncology.
• 2015–2017: İnönü University Faculty of Medicine Professor, Department of General Surgery.
• 2007–2015: İnönü University Faculty of Medicine Associate Professor, Department of General Surgery.
• 2002–2007: Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital Chief Assistant, Department of General Surgery.
• 2001–2002: Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital Specialist, Department of General Surgery.
• 1997–2001: Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital Resident, Department of General Surgery.
• 1996–1997: Rize Fındıklı Central Health Center, General Practitioner.

5. Professional Memberships

• Turkish Surgical Society
• Ankara Surgical Society
• Ankara Breast Diseases Society
• Federation of Breast Disease Societies
• Gastrointestinal Surgery Society
• Endoscopic Laparoscopic Surgery Society
• American Society of Breast Cancer
• International Association of Surgeons, Gastroenterologists, and Oncologists
• Surgical Oncology Society (Board Member)

6. Awards

Awards and Achievements in Medical Research and Practice:

• 2003: Received the Encouragement Award from the Turkish Society of Surgery-Sanofi Pharma Thrombosis Research Foundation for the study “The Importance of Insulin Resistance and VEGF-C in Lymph Node Metastasis of Breast Cancer: A Prospective Clinical Study.”
• 2005: Won the 3rd Place Award for an oral presentation at the National Geriatrics Congress in Antalya, titled “Factors Affecting Mortality and Morbidity in Elderly Patients with Fournier’s Gangrene.”
• 2007: Secured the 2nd Place Award for an oral presentation at the National Breast Congress in Ankara for the research “Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors: A Risk Factor for Postmastectomy Lymphedema?”
• 2008: Honored with the AACR Scholar-in-Training Award at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in the USA for the study “The Predictive Probability of Four Different Breast Cancer Nomograms for Non-Sentinel Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis in Positive Sentinel Node Biopsy.”
• 2009: Awarded the Pilot Grant Award at the 6th International Symposium on the Intraductal Approach to Breast Cancer in Santa Monica, California, USA, for the research “Autofluorescence Ductoscopy for the Early Detection of Breast Cancer.”
• 2013: Celebrated the 1000th Liver Transplantation Excellence Award in April 2013.
• 2013: Prof. Bulent Unal Received the Best Poster Presentation Award at the 13th International Euroasian Congress of Surgery and Gastroenterology in Bucharest, Romania, for the case study “Massive Hemorrhage from Retropancreatic Portal Vein as a Complication of Thromboendovenectomy and Control with Balloon Catheter Tamponade during Liver Transplantation.”