Leaders of Neurosurgery at BAU

The International Symposium on Microsurgical Anatomy (ISMA), organized for the 6th time this year by the BAU School of Medicine, was held at the BAU Beşiktaş and Göztepe Campuses on 7–10 October..

Bringing together leading names in neurosurgery, the congress hosted authorities such as Prof. Dr. Ossama Al-Mefty, Director of the Skull Base Surgery Unit at Harvard Medical School's Brigham and Women's Hospital; Prof. Dr. Johannes Schramm, Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Bonn School of Medicine; Prof. Dr. Toshio Matsushima, Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Saga University in Japan; and Prof. Dr. Tiit Mathiesen, Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Karolinska Hospital in Sweden.

Cadaver courses organized as part of the congress, where the latest approaches to brain diseases were discussed, were also held on 7–8 October at the Rhoton Microsurgical Anatomy Laboratory on the BAU Göztepe Campus under the auspices of Prof. Dr. Ossama Al-Mefty and Prof. Dr. Toshio Matsushima, with the participation of 30 neurosurgeons from 7 countries.

At the press conference of the 6th ISMA Congress, chaired by BAU Dean of the School of Medicine Prof. Dr. Türker Kılıç with the honorary chairmanship of Prof. Dr. Erdener Timurkaynakof the Department of Neurosurgery at Ufuk University School of Medicine, it was stated that neurosurgery is one of the fastest-developing fields of science, and it was announced that Türkiye ranks among the top 6–10 countries in terms of its contribution to world neurosurgery by number of publications.

 Turkish neurosurgeons are the physicians contributing most to world science 

Speaking at the press conference, BAU Dean of the School of Medicine Prof. Dr. Türker Kılıç emphasized the significant impact on the development of neurosurgery of digital technology and brain and tumor biology, the fastest-developing fields of science worldwide. Reminding that the world-renowned neurosurgeons attending the press conference came from the top 5 most advanced countries in neurosurgery, Prof. Dr. Kılıç underlined that Türkiye ranks among the top 6–10 in the world in neurosurgery by number of publications. Noting that, considering our country has ranked among the top 17–20 in economic power over the last 20 years, neurosurgery is ahead of our economic power, Prof. Dr. Kılıç stated that neurosurgeons in Türkiye are the physicians contributing most to world science.

Explaining that, with the developing impact of scientific advances worldwide, especially in the treatment of brain diseases, our country has also brought many clinical innovations to neurosurgery, Prof. Dr. Kılıç said:

"Recent developments in molecular biology and genetics have given rise to the concept of personalized treatment. At this point, the idea has developed that not only every patient but also every tumor is a unique living entity. Therefore, it is not enough to personalize surgery anatomically; treatment must also be personalized biologically to the tumor. We believe that clinical applications in this field will find a place in the treatment of brain tumors and pituitary adenomas in the near future."

 "Brain tumor banks" will serve new drugs

Stating that brain tumor banks are needed to develop personalized treatments for brain tumors, Prof. Dr. Türker Kılıç emphasized that our country has one of the richest tissue banks in the world in this regard, and continued:

"Thanks to these banks, the tumor tissue obtained during surgery can be genetically analyzed and molecularly characterized, enabling clinically applicable research on suitable drug treatments. Brain tumor banks make it possible both to accumulate diseased brain tissue in order to generate knowledge in this field and to keep it ready for experimental use."

Attending the press conference, Director of the Skull Base Surgery Unit at Harvard Medical School's Brigham and Women's Hospital Prof. Dr. Ossama Al-Mefty stated that significant progress has been made in the treatment of brain tumors in recent years, saying: "We need new surgeon-scientists to understand the language of the tumor even better."

 "Drug treatments that shrink tumors have broken new ground"

Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Bonn School of Medicine Prof. Dr. Johannes Schramm also stated that they are increasingly using drugs in the treatment of brain tumors. Prof. Dr. Schramm said: "Drugs, which play an important role especially in shrinking tumors, have broken new ground in the treatment of pituitary adenomas."

Explaining that in epilepsy surgery, just as in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, epileptic attacks can be prevented thanks to a small electrode implanted in patients, Prof. Dr. Schramm

summarized the developments of the last 40 years, adding that the mortality rate for many diseases has fallen from around 10% to below 1%.

Among those attending the press conference, Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Karolinska Hospital in Sweden Prof. Dr. Tiit Mathiesen stated that they are seeking new ways through technological means to better understand the biology of tumors.