Prof. Tekkeşin, recipient of the TÜBA-GEBİP Award, was elected as the President of IAOP.

Prof. Dr. Merva Soluk Tekkeşin, recipient of the TÜBA-Outstanding Young Scientist Award (TÜBA-GEBİP) and faculty member of the Department of Oral Pathology at Ankara University Faculty of Dentistry, has been elected as the president of the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathologists (IAOP) for the 2028-2030 term.

Prof. Dr. Merva Soluk Tekkeşin, who conducts international studies in the field of oral and maxillofacial pathology and whose scientific research focuses particularly on oral and maxillofacial pathology, being elected as the IAOP President is also significant in terms of increasing the visibility of Turkey's scientific competence in this field on an international platform.

The International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathologists (IAOP) is an international organization that aims to develop international cooperation among scientists and experts working in the field of oral and maxillofacial pathology, to increase the sharing of scientific knowledge and experience, and to contribute to the scientific development of the field.

Prof. Dr. Who is Merva Soluk Tekkeşin?

She graduated from Istanbul University (IU) Faculty of Dentistry in 2003. She completed her doctorate in Tumor Pathology at the Department of Clinical Oncology, IU Oncology Institute in 2010. She received the title of Associate Professor in 2015 and Professor in 2021.

Prof. Tekkeşin's main areas of interest are odontogenic lesions, fibro-osseous lesions, oral cancers, oral potentially malignant lesions, and digital pathology and artificial intelligence applications. Between 2009 and 2010, she worked as a research fellow with a temporary diploma equivalency at King's College London Guy's Hospital, Department of Head and Neck and Oral Pathology. During this time, she became the first international assistant to be accepted into and successfully complete the Tier 5 program in the United Kingdom; the award was presented by the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Between 2010 and 2014, she served as the secretary of the Head and Neck Pathology Working Group of the Federation of Pathology Societies. She served as the Secretary of the Information Technology Working Group of the same federation between 2021 and 2023.

Between 2014 and 2020, she served as the European representative of the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathologists (IAOP), being elected twice consecutively. Between 2020 and 2026, she served on the board of directors as the first digital communications representative of the same organization. In July 2026, Prof. Dr. Merva Soluk Tekkeşin was unanimously elected as the World President of this association for the 2028-2030 term, and will continue to serve on the board of directors as President-Elect until 2028.

Prof. Tekkeşin is also one of the 13 members of the International Consortium of Odontogenic Tumors, founded in 2021 and comprised of experienced pathologists from around the world. Tekkeşin has numerous publications indexed in international databases and has contributed chapters and editorships to many books, including the World Health Organization (WHO) Classification of Head and Neck Tumors, which was published in its 4th edition in 2017 and its 5th edition in 2022.

Tekkeşin, who received the 2019 TÜBA Outstanding Young Scientist Award for his work on artificial intelligence and oral cancers in the field of health sciences, continues his work at the Department of Oral Pathology, Faculty of Dentistry, Ankara University (AU).