Doctor
Prof. Hamdi Karakayalı, MD — Transplant Surgeon, Istanbul
Prof. Hamdi Karakayalı is a transplant surgeon at the kidney transplant centre of Acıbadem Atakent Hospital, Istanbul. He qualified at Hacettepe University in 1988 and has held transplant posts since 1994, including seventeen years at Başkent University.
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About this clinician
- Specialty
- Organ Transplantation and Endocrine Surgery
- Location
- Istanbul, Turkey
- Languages
- tr, en
- Medical register
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In short
Prof. Hamdi Karakayalı is a transplant surgeon at the kidney transplant centre of Acıbadem Atakent Hospital in Istanbul, practising in organ transplantation and endocrine surgery. He qualified in medicine at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine in 1988 and completed general surgery training there in 1994. He spent 1994 to 2011 at Başkent University Hospital, rising to professor in 1998 and serving as vice chair of general surgery, then directed transplant centres at Gaziosmanpaşa and Medipol Mega before joining Acıbadem in 2017. His profile names membership of six professional societies.
At a glance
- Transplant surgeon at the kidney transplant centre, Acıbadem Atakent Hospital, Istanbul.
- Medical degree: Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, 1988.
- General surgery training at Hacettepe, completed 1994.
- Seventeen years at Başkent University Hospital, professor from 1998.
- Directed the organ transplant centre at Medipol Mega University Hospital, 2013–2017.
- His profile names membership of The Transplantation Society, MESOT and four others.
- Consults in Turkish and English.
Training and career
Hamdi Karakayalı qualified in medicine at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine in Ankara in 1988, and completed general surgery training at the same faculty in 1994.
His career from 1994 to 2011 was at Başkent University Hospital, which is one of the institutions most closely associated with the development of transplantation in Türkiye. He was a specialist there from 1994, associate professor from 1996, professor from 1998, and vice chair of the department of general surgery from 1999 to 2010. From 2009 to 2011 his profile records him as responsible for liver and kidney transplantation there.
He then led transplant units elsewhere: head of the organ transplant centre and hepatopancreatobiliary unit at Private Gaziosmanpaşa Hospital from 2011 to 2013, and director of the organ transplant centre and HPB unit at Medipol Mega University Hospital from 2013 to 2017. He joined Acıbadem Healthcare Services in 2017.
Read as a whole, that is close to four decades in surgery and three in transplantation, with the middle of it spent at a university programme and the later part directing units. The progression from performing transplants to running the unit that performs them is the ordinary shape of a senior transplant career, and this record shows it plainly.
- Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, MD 1988; general surgery 1994.
- Başkent University Hospital 1994–2011; professor from 1998.
- Vice chair, department of general surgery, Başkent, 1999–2010.
- Head of organ transplant centre, Gaziosmanpaşa, 2011–2013.
- Director of organ transplant centre and HPB unit, Medipol Mega, 2013–2017.
- Acıbadem Healthcare Services from 2017.
Societies and advisory roles, as his profile states them
His profile names membership of The Transplantation Society, the Turkish Transplantation Association, the Middle East Society for Organ Transplantation, the American College of Surgeons, and the European Board of Surgery. It also records him as an adviser to the Ministry of Health scientific committees for liver transplantation and for kidney transplantation, from 2002 to 2010.
We set these out as claims his own profile makes rather than as findings, and the distinction is deliberate. A ministry advisory appointment is precisely the kind of credential a reader accepts without question and has no easy way to check, which is what makes it worth flagging rather than repeating flatly.
They are also checkable, unlike most things on a clinician page. Professional societies maintain membership registers, and the American College of Surgeons and The Transplantation Society both publish directories. If these memberships matter to your decision, they are among the few credentials on any surgeon's profile you can confirm without asking the hospital.
- The Transplantation Society; Turkish Transplantation Association; MESOT.
- American College of Surgeons; European Board of Surgery.
- Ministry of Health liver and kidney transplantation scientific committees, 2002–2010.
- Stated here as his profile's claims, not as findings.
- Society memberships are among the few credentials a reader can check directly.
Clinical practice, and what this page does not tell you
His stated specialty is organ transplantation — kidney and liver — together with endocrine surgery. He is based at the kidney transplant centre at Acıbadem Atakent Hospital in Istanbul, and his profile states that he accepts international patients.
The combination of transplantation and endocrine surgery is common in Turkish general surgery: both sit within general surgery, and a transplant surgeon typically maintains a broader operative practice alongside the transplant list.
What is not published, and therefore not stated here: how many transplants he has performed, in total or last year; his own graft survival or outcome figures; a medical council registration number; and any languages beyond Turkish and English.
As with every clinician on this site, a name on a hospital's website is not a commitment that he will perform your operation. If you want a specific surgeon, ask the centre to confirm in writing who will operate before committing to anything.
- Organ transplantation — kidney and liver — and endocrine surgery.
- Based at Acıbadem Atakent Hospital, Istanbul; accepts international patients.
- Transplant volumes and individual outcomes: not published.
- No registration number published; Turkish and English only are listed.
- A listed surgeon is not a commitment to operate — confirm in writing.
Common questions
Where does Prof. Hamdi Karakayalı practise?
At the kidney transplant centre of Acıbadem Atakent Hospital in Istanbul. His profile states that he accepts international patients.
What is his specialty?
Organ transplantation — kidney and liver — together with endocrine surgery. He qualified in medicine in 1988 and has held transplant posts since the mid-1990s.
Where did he train?
Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine in Ankara: medicine in 1988, general surgery in 1994. His subsequent career was largely at Başkent University Hospital, where he became professor in 1998.
Has he directed a transplant unit?
His profile records him as head of the organ transplant centre and HPB unit at Private Gaziosmanpaşa Hospital from 2011 to 2013, and director of the equivalent unit at Medipol Mega University Hospital from 2013 to 2017.
What professional societies does he belong to?
His profile names The Transplantation Society, the Turkish Transplantation Association, the Middle East Society for Organ Transplantation, the American College of Surgeons and the European Board of Surgery. Society membership is one of the few credentials you can verify directly through the societies themselves.
How many transplants has he performed?
Not published by him or by Acıbadem, so we do not state it. Ask the centre for the number performed last year rather than a cumulative career or team total.
What languages does he speak?
His profile lists Turkish and English. Acıbadem states that interpreters are available for other languages; ask the hospital directly about arrangements for yours.
Sources
Prof. Hamdi Karakayalı, MD — Acıbadem profile opens in a new tab
acibademinternational.com
American College of Surgeons opens in a new tab
www.facs.org
PubMed — search the indexed literature by surname opens in a new tab
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Every date, post, society and advisory role here comes from his own published profile. The memberships in particular are checkable through the societies themselves, which is the check we would rather you made. Please open each link before relying on it.