General surgery is a technical discipline that comprises the treatment of systemic or local problems in the body through surgical means and has influenced several surgical and fundamental branches of medicine in terms of their general principles (such as wound healing, metabolic and endocrine response to injury etc.) and development.

The word “surgery” comes from the Latin word “chirurgiae” which means “handwork”. Surgery is one of the oldest branches of medicine and is based on the principle to surgically repair any diseases, injuries or structural deformities in the body that cannot be treated with drugs or other treatment methods or to excise the diseased organ to transform it into its natural and appropriate shape.

Types of surgeries are predominantly named after the operated organ or the system which such organ is part of. Endoscopic and laparoscopic surgical interventions involving the goiter (thyroid gland), breast, alimentary canal (esophagus), stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, anus, hernia, liver, gall bladder, and bile ducts are surgical interventions that fall into the scope of General Surgery. When classified according to systems, surgeries that are covered by General Surgery include goiter surgeries, breast surgeries, surgeries of the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and anal region as well as liver and hernia surgeries. In certain cases, General Surgery aims not only the performance of surgeries, but prevention of surgeries by means of preventive medicine.

Due to its large field of interest, the Department of General Surgery is working in collaboration and coordination with several other disciplines. The majority of General Surgery patients consists of various types of cancer cases. The diagnosis, surgery, and subsequent treatment stages of these patients are planned in collaboration with the departments of Gastroenterology, Radiology/Interventional Radiology, Pathology, Medical and Radiation Oncology.

Another field of interest of General Surgery is traumatology. Since multiple organ system injuries are frequently seen in trauma patients, coordination and collaboration with the Departments of Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Urology, and Cardiovascular Surgery is essential. Especially in case of severe multiple organ injuries, coordination of all these medical branches is undertaken by the Department of General Surgery.

In addition, acting with full awareness of our social responsibility, screening and detailed follow-up programs are carried out at the General Surgery Departments of our hospitals to contribute to the early diagnosis of colon cancer and breast cancer. ​​