Neurosurgeon Highlight: Sarah Mutomb, M.D.

Dr. Sarah Mutomb is a board-certified neurosurgeon and lecturer at the University of Lubumbashi, recognized as the first female neurosurgeon in the Democratic Republic of Congo (2019). Her journey into neurosurgery was sparked by a personal tragedy: watching her grandmother travel to Zimbabwe for life-saving spinal surgery, a journey that highlighted the critical barriers to care in her home country. This experience fueled her philosophy: "Access to emergency care should not depend on whether someone can cross a border fast enough."

After earning her medical degree from the University of Lubumbashi in 2012, Dr. Mutomb pursued her residency at Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar, Senegal (2014–2019), where she distinguished herself as the only female in the program. She later expanded her expertise with an inter-university diploma in neuroendoscopy at Mohammed V University in Rabat, Morocco (2024).

Clinically, Dr. Mutomb specializes in endoscopic neurosurgery, skull base surgery, neuro-oncology, and neurotrauma. However, mindful of the resource-limited setting in the DRC, she remains deeply engaged in general neurosurgery to serve the broad and urgent needs of her patients. Beyond the operating room, she is a dedicated educator and leader, serving as the Central Africa Representative for the Young African Neurosurgeons (2024–2026) and President of the Scientific Committee for the Congolese Society of Neurosurgery.