Ahmet Ruchan Akar was born in 1963, in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey. After graduating from T.E.D. Ankara College he received his medical degree from Ankara University Medical School in 1987 and has been in practice for 30 years. In 1992, he was qualified as a General Surgeon in Turkey. He moved to Britain in the same year to broaden his surgical skills and to compare the standards of other nations. He passed the ECFMG and USMLE exams in 1993. He was drawn to the field of Cardiothoracic and Vascular surgery during his appointment at the Hammersmith Hospital under the direction of Prof. K.M. Taylor. During 10 productive years in Aberdeen (Royal Aberdeen Sick Children's Hospital), London (Hammersmith Hospital), Glasgow (Western Infirmary), Sheffield (Northern General Hospital) and Leicester (Glenfield Hospital), he worked for several exciting consultants. He served as a senior registrar at the cardiac and lung transplant unit for 24 months. After succeeding Intercollegiate Speciality Examination in Cardiothoracic Surgery in May 2001, he returned to Turkey. He passed the Turkish Board for Cardiovascular Surgery in October 2001; qualified as an Associate Professor in April 2004, and as a Professor in April 2011 at Ankara University. Currently, Dr. Akar is serving as a Professor at the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, and Chief Medical Officer of Ankara University Cebeci Hospitals.  He is the Clinical Director of the Ankara University Organ Transplantation programmes, and is the Clinical Lead for the Mechanical Circulatory Support Device Programme. He is currently the President of Turkish Society of Cardiovascular Surgery

Primary research and clinical activities include heart transplantation, ventricular assist devices, total artifial heart, regenerative medicine (cardiovascular regeneration and angiogenesis), surgery for heart failure, valve repair/replacement surgery, ischemic mitral regurgitation, off-pump coronary artery surgery, aortic aneurysm surgery, arrhythmia surgery, risk stratification, medical informatics, interactive training on the internet, and surgical history.