Bill Heald is Chairman of the Colorectal Cancer Program at The Champalimaud Institute, Lisbon, Chairman of The European Academy of Robotic Colorectal Surgeons and Founder of the Pelican Cancer Foundation, Basingstoke Hospital, UK. He graduated with a First from Cambridge University and later the Mastership of Surgery (MChir). He is currently an Emeritus Professor at the University of Southampton and splits his time between Portugal and the UK as an International colorectal cancer lecturer and teacher of surgical technique. He is deeply involved in rectal cancer research and the teaching of laparoscopic and robotic surgery.
His lifetime work has centered around the conception, development, and introduction throughout the world of “Total Mesorectal Excision”. This was the first cancer procedure to be based anatomically on embryological principles. He was until recently performing and overseeing operative live open TME demonstrations in various European cities and to date has executed over 600 TV-based live operative demonstrations in more than 74 countries.
He has honorary fellowships at the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Additionally, Bill also holds honorary fellowships in Portugal, Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Sweden, China, the Netherlands and Serbia.
Bill served for 12 years on Council for the Royal College of Surgeons (2 years as Vice President). He has been elected President of the Section of Coloproctology at the Royal Society of Medicine and of the Association of Coloproctology of GB and Ireland.
Recent honors include, the BASO Ronald Raven Lifetime Achievement Award, the Grand Silver Medal from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and the Royal Order of the Polar Star for special services to Swedish cancer surgery awarded by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden.
