Mr George Eralil is a Consultant Neurosurgeon at Sancta Maria Hospital, Swansea, with his NHS practice at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff. He has fellowship experience in neuro-oncology and complex spinal surgery, and is widely considered to have one of the largest surgical facial pain practices in the United Kingdom.

In 2023, the Brain and CNS Cancer service he led at University Hospital of Wales was awarded Tessa Jowell Centre of Excellence status, one of only a handful of centres in the UK to receive this recognition. Mr Eralil has also featured in the BBC series Saving Lives in Cardiff.

Specialist Interests

• Brain tumour surgery (benign and malignant)
• Awake brain surgery for glioma
• Facial pain surgery (trigeminal, glossopharyngeal and geniculate neuralgias)
• Spinal cord tumour surgery
• Degenerative spinal disease (neck and lower back)
• Medicolegal neurosurgery

Procedures Offered at Sancta Maria Hospital

• Brain surgery for benign and malignant tumours
• Awake craniotomy for low grade glioma
• Microvascular decompression (MVD) for facial pain syndromes
• Surgery for trigeminal, glossopharyngeal and geniculate neuralgia
• Spinal cord tumour surgery
• Lumbar discectomy and nerve root decompression
• Cervical discectomy and foraminotomy
• Laminectomy
• Shunt surgery for hydrocephalus

Facial Pain

Mr Eralil leads the Facial Pain Network in South and West Wales and is a panel clinician for the Trigeminal Neuralgia and Facial Pain Association (TNFP). His expertise in facial pain encompasses diagnosis, surgical planning and bespoke treatment selection, balancing risk and benefit for each individual patient. He is also a licensed prescriber of medicinal cannabis formulations for conditions within his professional remit.

Awake Brain Surgery

Mr Eralil is a passionate advocate of awake surgery for brain tumours, believing every opportunity should be harnessed to preserve brain function surrounding invasive tumours. He has trained under Professor Hugues Duffau in Montpellier, France, one of the world’s leading authorities in awake surgery for low grade glioma.

NHS Leadership

Mr Eralil was Welsh Cancer Lead for Brain and CNS and Lead for Neurosurgical Oncology for NHS Wales from 2017 to 2023. During this time he transformed the Brain and CNS Cancer service for South and West Wales, which was awarded Tessa Jowell Centre of Excellence status in 2023. He continues to steer the Facial Pain Network across South and West Wales.

Research and Academic Roles

Mr Eralil is an Associate Editor of the British Journal of Neurosurgery and Principal Investigator for the FUTURE-GB Trial. He is also a PI on several other surgical and oncological trials. He provides specialist medicolegal advice to the Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman in both Scotland and England, and is trained and accredited as a medicolegal expert.

Professional Memberships

• Society of British Neurological Surgeons
• Welsh Pain Society
• Trigeminal Neuralgia and Facial Pain Association (TNFP)