Former ÇYDD President Türkan Saylan to be commemorated in Maltepe
Türkan Saylan, who began her work on leprosy in 1976 and founded the Leprosy Relief Association and Foundation, succumbed to cancer in 2009. On the 15th anniversary of her passing, she will be remembered with a program at the Prof. Dr. Türkan Saylan Cultural Center, which bears her name.
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Maltepe Municipality will host a commemoration program on Saturday, May 18, at 8:00 PM, featuring the screening of the documentary 'In the Light of Science and the Republic, Her Name is Türkan Saylan', directed by Nebil Özgentürk.
Pianist Dengin Ceyhan will also take the stage for a piano recital.
WHO IS TÜRKAN SAYLAN?
Prof. Dr. Türkan Saylan, who achieved tremendous success in both local and international arenas in many fields such as life, health, and education through the Association for Supporting Contemporary Living (ÇYDD), the Leprosy Relief Association and Foundation, and the Kardelen project, and who became a beacon of hope for thousands of people...
Born in Istanbul on December 13, 1935, Türkan Saylan graduated from Kandilli Girls' High School and Istanbul Faculty of Medicine. Saylan, who specialized in dermatology and venereal diseases in 1968, began working as a chief assistant in the Department of Dermatology at the Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine in the same year.
Having conducted studies in England and France, Saylan became a professor in 1977. She served as the Head of the Department of Dermatology at the Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine between 1982 and 1987, and as the Director of the Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine Leprosy Research and Application Center between 1981 and 2001.
In 1976, she began her work on leprosy and founded the Leprosy Relief Association and Foundation. In 1986, she received the "International Gandhi Award" in India. Saylan, who served as a consultant to the World Health Organization on leprosy until 2006, was also a founding member and vice president of the International Leprosy Union (ILU).
Married in 1957, Saylan had two sons and two grandchildren. Saylan, who fought against breast cancer for 17 years, passed away on May 18, 2009.