Prof. Dr. Ülkem Çakır

Prof. Dr. Ülkem Çakır is a nephrology specialist in the Nephrology Department at Acibadem Atasehir Hospital in İstanbul. With more than 33 years in medicine, her clinical interests include kidney transplantation, kidney failure, glomerulonephritis, diabetic nephropathy and haemodialysis. She is a member of the Turkish Society of Nephrology, the European Renal Associaton, the American Society of Nephrology and the TİGED Transplantation Immunology and Genetics Association.

Dr. Çakır graduated from Ankara University Faculty of Medicine in 1993 and completed her compulsory service at Kırşehir No. 1 Central Health Center (1993–1994). She specialized in internal medicine at Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital (1994–1998) and completed her nephrology subspecialty at Başkent University Faculty of Medicine (1998–2002). She then worked at Baylor College of Medicine (2002–2003) and Akdeniz University Hospital (2003–2005) before joining Yeditepe University Hospital (2005–2007), where she received her associate professorship in nephrology at Yeditepe University Faculty of Medicine in 2006. After a period at Başkent University İstanbul Hospital (2008–2009), she worked at Acıbadem Healthcare Services from 2009 to 2022 and was appointed professor of nephrology at Acıbadem University Faculty of Medicine in 2014. In 2023 she practised at Memorial Şişli Hospital. She has co-authored peer-reviewed publications on topics including outcomes in kidney transplant recipients, laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy techniques, bone disease and cardiac function after kidney transplantation, Fabry disease prevalence in renal replacement therapy in Turkey, and therapeutic plasma exchange in intensive care patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.

Clinical focus

Dr. Çakır evaluates and manages patients with kidney-related conditions across the course of kidney disease. Her work includes the diagnosis and treatment of glomerulonephritis and diabetic nephropathy, where treatment planning is directed at monitoring kidney function and addressing the underlying condition. For patients with kidney failure, she is involved in planning renal replacement therapy, including haemodialysis, and in reviewing which options are appropriate for the individual patient.

A substantial part of her practice concerns kidney transplantation. As a nephrologist, she takes part in the medical assessment of transplant candidates and in the follow-up of transplant recipients, including immunosuppressive management and the monitoring of complications. Her published research on transplant recipients and donors reflects this area of interest. The suitability of any treatment, including transplantation, depends on the findings of the individual evaluation.

How Dr. Çakır works with international patients

Dr. Çakır consults in Turkish and English, and interpreters can be arranged for other languages. The international patient team coordinates the collection of prior reports and imaging, arranges appointments and organises the hospital visit. A first consultation typically covers the patient’s history and symptoms, a review of existing imaging, laboratory results and previous treatments, a clinical examination and a discussion of the options. Video consultations are available for international patients who wish to discuss their situation before travelling.