“Music, poetry and Latin dancing are my interests when I’m not in theatre.”

19 February 2025 - Spotlight interview with Professor Keyoumars Ashkan, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Professor of Neurosurgery, who was recently awarded an MBE for Services to Neurosurgery

His expertise in brain tumour surgery, as well as deep brain stimulation for conditions including movement disorders, are recognised nationally and internationally, attracting patients for treatment, peer requests for opinions, and fellows for training from all around the world.

We met with him to find out more about his career, as well as his interests outside of work, which include playing the piano, Latin dancing and composing poetry.

Tell us about your career at King’s

“I was appointed as a consultant here in 2006, but I also trained at King’s, so I have a very long association with the Trust. My clinical and research interests are neuro-oncology and functional neurosurgery for movement disorders and severe pain. I am also the co-chair of the King’s Neuroscience Research Delivery Unit.

“I hold a number of national and international positions, such as elected membership of the Council of the Society of Neurological Surgeons, and I am the Immediate Past President of the British Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery.”

What do you enjoy about being part of Team King’s?

“I have worked elsewhere, but the teamwork here is really extraordinary. Colleagues support each other and the environment is geared towards our development.”

You were recently awarded an MBE – what was your reaction when you found out?

“I was presenting at a conference in Birmingham and received a message from my mum asking me to call her. She was staying with me and had opened the letter, so she read it out to me over the phone.

For us medics, getting a smile from a patient or a thank you card is more than enough to make our day. But it was an amazing feeling and very heart-warming to know one has been acknowledged. It is a definite confirmation that what I am doing is making a difference, and adds to my resolve to keep working hard.”

Tell us about your interests outside of work

“When I’m not in the operating theatre, playing the piano, composing poetry and dancing, especially Latin, are a few of my pastimes.

“I am very musical and have been playing the piano all my life. I did a degree in music at the same time as medicine, and enjoy composing as well as playing. I get asked to play the piano at national and international conferences where I am invited to speak or chair, and everyone I meet seems to know about my playing.

“I also write poetry and write a new poem at the start of each year to send to family and friends for the New Year [you can read Professor Ashkan’s 2025 poem below], and I love to dance. I used to teach Latin dancing and dance a lot, however there aren’t as many opportunities or occasions for me to dance anymore, life!”

Has your talent for music ever been useful in your work at King’s?

“It was certainly useful when I cared for the violinist Dagmar Turner. She specifically sought me as her surgeon as she knew I would understand how important it was for her to retain her ability to play music – I had that link with her and I was delighted that we could remove her tumour and preserve her movement and coordination to play the violin.”

My colleagues here also know about my music, and I played with the King’s Choir during COVID.

You can also watch Professor Keyoumars Ashkan behind the scenes in our Brilliant People video series.