Mr Ben Byrne

Mr Ben Byrne is a Consultant General and Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeon who works at Spire Bristol Hospital and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust, including the Bristol Royal Infirmary. He provides laparoscopic surgery for hernias and gallbladder disease, and sub-specialist care for oesophageal and gastric conditions. His practice includes both elective general surgery and complex upper gastrointestinal work at the regional centre for oesophageal and gastric cancer.

Mr Byrne has extensive experience in minimally invasive surgery and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. He has performed more than 300 hernia repairs using laparoscopic and open approaches and over 300 cholecystectomies. He has also carried out more than 1,000 diagnostic and therapeutic upper gastrointestinal endoscopies. He offers laparoscopic procedures for abdominal wall hernias, gallstone disease and anti-reflux conditions, and provides endoscopic and surgical management for oesophageal and gastric disorders, including achalasia. At the Bristol Royal Infirmary, he contributes to the full range of surgical and endoscopic treatments for both early and advanced oesophago-gastric cancers.

Mr Byrne is the gastrointestinal and endoscopy governance lead at the Bristol Royal Infirmary and co-lead for the local cholecystectomy quality improvement programme, part of a national Royal College of Surgeons initiative. He has developed day-case pathways for anti-reflux surgery and has redesigned clinical information resources for patients within the oesophago-gastric team.

He studied medicine at the University of Cambridge and completed clinical training in the Wessex, London and Severn regions. His subspecialist training includes an Oesophago-Gastric Cancer Fellowship at St Thomas’ Hospital in London, one of the highest-volume units in the UK. Alongside his clinical work, he has a strong academic background and completed a PhD at Imperial College London focusing on high performance in surgical practice. He has continued research at the University of Bristol, examining the relationship between clinical trials and routine care.