Dr Izak van Heerden qualified as a medical doctor at The University of Pretoria, he did his housemanship at Kalafong Hospital and was in the Military Service for 2 years where he gained experience in trauma work. He then did a 6-month course of anaesthetics to prepare him for a surgical career, as well as a one-year experience in general surgery.

In the early 1990’s he started with radical prostate surgery and was one of the pioneers of radical prostatectomy in South Africa, he helped many urologists throughout the country to establish their own practices of prostate cancer surgery. The completion of his studies coincided with the start of percutaneous kidney stone removal and he is recognized as one of the prime exponents of percutaneous removal of complicated kidney stones in South Africa. He then joined the Department of Urology at The University of Pretoria under Prof Dion du Plessis, and after completing his studies started a private practice in Pretoria, while still serving as a consultant and lecturer at The University of Pretoria Medical School. For more than 20 years, he has been running the paediatric urology training programme at The University of Pretoria and also at Steve Biko Hospital. Dr van Heerden has gained experience in specifically complicated reconstructive paediatric urology that few people in South Africa has.