Three staff members from King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust have been recognised in the 2025 New Year Honours List, including a surgeon who performed brain surgery as a patient played the violin.
In 2020, the world watched as Professor Keyoumars Ashkan removed a brain tumour from a violinist while she played to help preserve delicate hand movements and coordination.
The groundbreaking approach ensured crucial areas of her brain were protected during the millimetre-precise procedure.
It is for this and his other pioneering research that Professor Ashkan has now received an MBE for services to neurosurgery. Reflecting on the award, he said, “To receive such an Honour is truly beyond my expectations and fills me with immense pride and gratitude.”
Professor Stephanie Amiel, Honorary Consultant in Diabetes, was awarded a Damehood for services to diabetes care.
Since joining King’s in 1995, she introduced islet transplantation to the NHS, helping patients with type 1 diabetes and severe hypoglycaemia. Her work made King’s the first centre in the UK to successfully transplant a patient in the national programme.
She also played a pivotal role in developing the Dose Adjustment for Normal Eating (DAFNE) patient education programme, which reduced diabetes emergencies and cut emergency care costs by over 60 per cent.
Speaking about her Damehood, she said, “This honour acknowledges the dedication of our team and patients. If I have been able to make things a little better for some of them, that is an honour indeed.”
Professor Safa Al-Sarraj, Consultant Neuropathologist, received an OBE for contributions to neuropathology.
He has been Head of Clinical Neuropathology and Director of the Brain Bank since 2002 and is recognised globally for advancing the understanding of neurological diseases such as dementia, neurodegeneration, and brain tumours.
His work has had a profound impact on clinical practice and public health, particularly in traumatic brain injury and forensic neuropathology. He described the award as “a recognition of our team’s efforts.”