Professor Ronan Cahill was appointed Professor of Surgery at University College Dublin (UCD) and the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital (MMUH) in June 2014 before taking over leadership of the Section and Subject of Surgery in UCD in 2017. In 2019, he was appointed Director of the Centre for Precision Surgery, UCD and the Digital Surgery Unit, MMUH. Ronan graduated MB,BAO,BCh (Hons) from University College Dublin in 1997 and then completed his basic and specialist surgical training in Ireland, gaining both MD by thesis (Health Research Board Clinical Research Fellow) and FRCS by examination. Thereafter, he was a clinical fellow at the IRCAD/EITS Institute in Strasbourg, France from 2007 to 2008 before moving to the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals as a senior fellow and then honorary consultant and senior clinical researcher from 2008 to 2010. Ronan returned to Ireland in 2010 as a consultant general surgeon (specialist interest in colorectal surgery) at Beaumont Hospital before moving to the Mater and UCD. He is a recipient of both the Bennett and Millen Medals (RCSI Millen Lecturer 2010) and was the ASGBI Robert Smith Lecturer in 2014.
He has authored over 275 peer-reviewed publications, seven book chapters and four National Guidelines. He has been an editorial board member of five indexed surgical journals, including Colorectal Disease and the European Journal of Surgical Oncology and is a former member of the SAGES Research Committee (SAGES Career Development Award recipient 2009).
He has a major academic interest in Surgical Innovation and New Technologies and active basic science, clinical and device development research partnerships both nationally and internationally including the performance of phase 1, 2 and 3 trials aimed at advancing surgical practice. He was a co-awardee and clinical lead of the now successfully concluded major Disruptive Innovation and Technologies Fund (DTIF) award by the Irish Government (for a project entitled "The Future of Colorectal Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment", a consortium including UCD, RCSI, IBM Research and Dechiphex using artificial intelligence for decision support in surgery and pathology) and EU Horizon 2020 consortium award (entitled PORSAV- Protecting Operating Room Staff Against Aerosolized Virus). He is currently PI for the major Horizon Europe Consortium award CLASSICA, a multidisciplinary effort to validate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) software for decision support during endoscopic and laparoscopic procedures for significant rectal polyps and cancers. He has additional work ongoing in AI support for perfusion assessment during general, colorectal and plastics and reconstructive surgery including high degree supervision and collaborative clinical study.
Selected publications from PubMed
Indocyanine green fluorescence angiography for anastomotic perfusion assessment in colorectal surgery: a systematic review with meta-analysis, meta-regression, and trial sequential analyses.
Ryan ÉJ, Ryan OK, Corrigan N, Ainsworth G, Hilling DE, Vahrmeijer AL, Kössi J, Watanabe J, Jayne D, Cahill RA
Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2026 May;11(5):367-379 doi: 10.1016/S2468-1253(25)00373-5.
Perioperative splanchnic perfusion variation around colorectal surgery using both indocyanine green spectrophotometry and fluorescence angiography.
Meneghesso PE, Moynihan A, Singaravelu A, McCaul C, Dalli J, Cahill RA
Surg Endosc. 2026 May;40(5):3987-3995 doi: 10.1007/s00464-026-12680-1.
CRUCIAL Insights From a Decade Long Retrospective National Audit of Total Abdominal Colectomy Outcomes for Ulcerative Colitis.
Stephens IJB, Murphy B, Burns L, Hannan E, Carroll A, O'Neill M, Drumm C, McIntyre T, Costello L, Brown IG, Abushara S, Wong KSX, McGarry J, Keyes B, Davey MG, Rudwan A, Bashir M, Dablouk L, Taha A, Mohamed A, Ylli K, Salih A, Ahmed S, Eltigani E, Elmakki AFS, Tewatia V, Falade O, Sweeney J, O'Neill A, Roden Y, Dasmuth N, Toomey DP, Faul E, Kearney DE, Neary PM, Killeen S, Andrews E, Peirce C, Cahill R, Joyce M, Kavanagh DO, McCormick PH, Martin ST, Burke JP, CRUCIAL (Colectomy and the Rectum in Ulcerative Colitis—Irish Audit of Long-term outcomes) Collaborators
Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2026 May 1;32(5):929-937 doi: 10.1093/ibd/izaf314.
Management of anastomotic leak following restorative rectal cancer resection-a multi-centre retrospective audit in Ireland.
Walsh R, Creavin B, Murphy E, Daly TK, Subramanian KV, Kennedy ND, Byrne L, Flanagan M, Ryan ÉJ, Burke JP, Joyce M, McCormick PH, Mulsow JJ, Cahill RA
Ir J Med Sci. 2026 Aug;195(4):1891-1900 doi: 10.1007/s11845-026-04335-w.
Laparoscopic surgery is renowned for its challenges: the change in viewpoint, limited access, the mastery of the long instruments… On top of the technical skills, there are a range of human-factors dynamics that change. If you want to be the best laparoscopic surgeon you can be, what does the training journey look like? How do you know when you are performing well?
With Laptitude
Published
Mar 2025
Anastomotic leaks are among the most serious complications in surgery, especially at the proximal and distal ends of the intestinal tract. Despite numerous attempts, many methods to reduce these leaks have not been successful.
With Medtronic
Published
Jul 2024
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In recent decades, China has seen significant growth in the medicine field, standing out as a leader in medical research and treatment advancements. To offer a thorough understanding of Chinese medicine's practices and its impact on global health, we introduce "Meet the Institutions" as part of the Healing in China series. This initiative provides access to leading medical centers in China, offering opportunities for collaboration and participation in their activities and projects. In this event, AIS specially invites top colorectal surgery experts from China, Ireland and the Netherlands to share academic insights on rectal NOSES. This event features medical presentations, operation videos, and interactive discussions to enhance surgical skills and improve global standards in this field.
With Johnson & Johnson MedTech
Published
May 2024
London CRS returns in 2022 with a top-notch faculty from around the globe showcasing the latest innovative technologies in Digital Surgery. This is a 2- part event, including Advanced Tools and Imaging with a lively discussion between our diverse panelists. Leading surgeons and researchers will describe cutting-edge techniques and provide their personal insights on the future of surgery. Don't miss one of the highlights of the surgical calendar - LondonCRS22!
With Karl Storz
Published
Apr 2022
Help your network discover Prof. Ronan Cahill's clinical expertise.
