Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş, MD, PhD (C)

Professor of Neurosurgery – Stem Cell & Immunology

Neurosurgery has been Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş’ main field of work since the late 1990s. Over the years, most of his cases have been complex. Many were not solved quickly. Some were not solved at all. This reality shaped how he works and how he thinks about neurological disease. It also shaped how careful decisions are made.

He graduated from Trakya University Faculty of Medicine in 1997 and completed his neurosurgical training in 2003. Early on, his interest focused on spinal cord injury and neural repair. Not from a theoretical angle, but from clinical frustration and daily work with limited treatment options.

In 2007, he received a postdoctoral research fellowship at Harvard Medical School. He worked on experimental spinal cord injury models and neural stem cell research. The work was laboratory-based. It was demanding. It changed how he later approached patients in clinical practice.

When he began additional studies in stem cell biology and immunology in the year 2019, it was not a career change. He completed this doctoral programme at Marmara University in the Department of Health Sciences in Istanbul. It followed the same line of work. Regeneration, inflammation, neural recovery.

Clinical Practice of Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş

Prof. Dr. Kabataş works with both adult and pediatric patients. Some come after trauma. Some after hypoxic events. Others arrive after years of unclear diagnoses and limited treatment options. There is no standard patient profile. There never really was.

Classical neurosurgery remains central to his work. In selected cases, regenerative treatment options may also be discussed. These include stem cell-based and exosome-based approaches. Discussions like this may arise in ALS, autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophies, spinal cord injury, peripheral nerve injury, traumatic or hypoxic brain injury, and certain chronic pain conditions.

These approaches are never routine. There is no protocol-based promise. These approaches are never routine. There is no protocol-based promise. Every case is different; there is no standard approach, and each person must be assessed individually.
The important factors here are

• Scientific plausibility
• Safety
• The expectations of the patient and their family

It is often just as important to know what cannot or should not be done. This is just as important as knowing what should and can be done.

Scientific Work of Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş

Research has always accompanied Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş’ clinical activity. It was never treated as a separate career path. His work includes experimental and clinical studies focusing on spinal cord injury, neural stem cells, peripheral nerve injury, traumatic and hypoxic brain injury, intervertebral disc degeneration, pain management, and neurodegenerative disease mechanisms.

He has authored or co-authored 69 peer-reviewed publications in international journals. These publications have received more than 1,800 citations. His current academic metrics include an h-index of 25 and an i10-index of 44. Many of his publications are indexed in PubMed. Many are still cited.

In 2004, he ranked first nationally with his neurosurgery specialization thesis. He again ranked first in the Turkish Board Examination in 2011. In 2013, he received a national research award for a study on stem cell applications in a rat model of spinal cord injury. He also serves as a reviewer and editorial contributor for national and international scientific journals.

Academic and Leadership Roles of Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş

Leadership responsibilities have been part of Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş’ work for many years, alongside continuous clinical activity. Earlier in his career, he was responsible for neurosurgical department leadership at Private Reyap Hospital in Tekirdağ between 2013 and 2015, where surgical work and day-to-day departmental organization were closely linked.

A large part of his professional activity later took place in Istanbul. From 2016 until November 2025, he worked at the University of Health Sciences Türkiye, Gaziosmanpaşa Training and Research Hospital. During this period, he was responsible for the Department of Neurosurgery and continued hands-on work with both adult and pediatric patients. The workload was substantial, and clinical complexity was part of daily routine.

Since November 2025, his work has been based in private practice at the Regen.IC Clinic. Here, the focus is on individualized neurosurgical care, with selected regenerative treatment approaches considered where medically appropriate.

His involvement in professional organizations developed alongside his clinical career. He was among the founding members of the Society of Stem Cell and Cellular Therapies in 2013, served as its President between 2021 and 2024, and currently holds the position of Vice President.

Professional Memberships of Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş

• Turkish Neurosurgical Society
• Society of Nervous System Surgery
• Turkish Spine Society
• Society for Neuroscience
• American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS)
• Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS)

Working with Patients

Neurological disease is rarely simple. Many patients arrive after long periods of uncertainty. Some come with high expectations. Others with none at all. Time is taken before decisions are made.

Each patient is approached individually by Prof. Dr. Serdar Kabataş. Medical history matters. Context matters. Limits are discussed openly.

When children are involved, conversations extend to families. Long-term consequences and daily life are part of the discussion from the beginning.

In regenerative medicine, caution is essential. Stem cell and exosome-based treatments are considered only when there is a clear medical rationale. Safety, ethical responsibility, and honest communication are treated as basic requirements.