Baki Topal is a surgeon, professor of medicine, and author. His work combines clinical practice and academic medicine with writing, education, and reflection on healthcare and society. At its core is the person behind the patient: with their expectations, vulnerability, values, and right to have a voice in their own care.

As a surgeon and academic, Baki Topal is affiliated with University Hospitals KU Leuven (UZ Leuven) and KU Leuven. His clinical and scientific expertise lies in minimally invasive hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery, with a particular focus on pancreatic cancer. Alongside patient care and research, he is actively involved in the education and training of physicians and surgeons. Years of experience in medicine have taught him that good care requires more than medical knowledge and technical expertise alone.

This conviction lies at the heart of his book Cutting into the Silence. Drawing on experiences from medical practice, he writes about the relationship between doctor and patient, about listening and speaking, hope and vulnerability, and the limits of what medicine can and should do. The book asks how we can continue to make room for the human being when illness, medical possibilities, and professional responsibility intersect.

These themes also form the basis of his lectures and talks for healthcare professionals, students, and wider audiences. In them, he combines medical experience with reflection on person-centred care, communication, responsibility, and human dignity.

Baki Topal is also the creator of Zigana, a compass for growth in a complex world. Inspired by the mist-covered Zigana Pass in northeastern Turkey, it helps people find their bearings when the path ahead is not self-evident. Zigana does not prescribe a route. Instead, it offers a way to consciously find direction and keep moving, while remaining connected to yourself and

to the environment in which you find yourself.

On this website, you can discover more about Baki Topal’s work as a surgeon and professor, Cutting into the Silence, his lectures and media appearances, and Zigana.