Dr. Céléstin Mbarga

Dr. Céléstin Mbarga is a senior general surgeon at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Yaoundé (CHU de Yaoundé), Cameroon's foremost public teaching hospital and the country's most important medical institution in the capital. With 18 years of surgical experience, Dr. Mbarga is one of the established names in Cameroonian surgery and has contributed significantly to both the clinical development and the teaching mission of the CHU de Yaoundé's surgical department.

Cameroon's bilingual character — with French dominant in most of the country and English spoken in the Northwest and Southwest regions — is reflected in Dr. Mbarga's practice. He is fully bilingual in French and English, allowing him to communicate effectively with patients from across Cameroon and with the significant Cameroonian diaspora communities in France, the UK, and North America. This bilingualism also enables him to engage fully with international surgical literature and international training programmes.

Dr. Mbarga's surgical interests have evolved towards colorectal surgery and oncological resections, areas of growing importance as colorectal cancer is increasingly diagnosed in Cameroon's urban population. He works within a multidisciplinary oncology framework at CHU de Yaoundé, collaborating with oncologists and radiologists to plan and execute cancer surgery. He also trains surgical residents and is a faculty member for the Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences Biomédicales (FMSB) at the Université de Yaoundé I.

Dr. Mbarga completed his Doctorat en Médecine at the Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences Biomédicales of the Université de Yaoundé I. He undertook his surgical residency at CHU de Yaoundé, earning his Diplôme de Spécialité en Chirurgie Générale. He completed an advanced surgical fellowship at the Hôpital Lariboisière in Paris, where he received formal training in colorectal surgery and laparoscopic techniques, obtaining an Attestation de Formation en Chirurgie Laparoscopique. He is a member of the Société Camerounaise de Chirurgie and participates in the West African College of Surgeons' continuing surgical education programme.

Dr. Mbarga performs a wide range of general surgical procedures with particular expertise in colorectal and oncological surgery. He carries out laparoscopic and open colorectal resections for cancer and benign disease, low anterior resection, abdominoperineal resection, and colostomy formation and reversal. In upper gastrointestinal surgery, he performs gastrectomy, oesophageal surgery, and hepatic resection for selected cases. He carries out laparoscopic cholecystectomy, appendectomy, hernia repair, and emergency laparotomy. In the oncology setting, he participates in tumour board discussions for gastrointestinal malignancies and provides surgical consultation for patients being evaluated for operative treatment.

Dr. Mbarga has contributed to surgical research publications in francophone African medical journals, focusing on colorectal cancer presentation patterns in Cameroon and outcomes of laparoscopic surgery in a sub-Saharan African teaching hospital context. He has presented research at the Société Camerounaise de Chirurgie's annual conferences and at the West African College of Surgeons' congresses. He supervises surgical residents' research projects at CHU de Yaoundé and serves as a reviewer for Cameroonian and Central African surgical publications.

Dr. Mbarga is fully bilingual in French and English, making him one of the more accessible Cameroonian surgeons for English-speaking international patients from the UK, USA, Australia, and Cameroon's anglophone diaspora. His experience in colorectal and oncological surgery provides a specialist option for diaspora patients who return to Yaoundé seeking surgical evaluation or treatment. CHU de Yaoundé is equipped for complex surgical procedures and receives patients from across Cameroon as well as from neighbouring Chad, Central African Republic, and Gabon. Diaspora patients can contact the hospital's specialist outpatient service for pre-consultation documentation guidance.

Dr. Mbarga is recognised as a leading surgeon and educator at CHU de Yaoundé. He holds faculty status at the Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences Biomédicales of the Université de Yaoundé I and has been commended for his contributions to surgical training. He is an active member of the Société Camerounaise de Chirurgie and a fellow of the West African College of Surgeons, reflecting regional recognition of his surgical expertise and professional standing.