Liang Hong: Promoting the Harmonious Integration of Molecular Nuclear Medicine and Precision Medicine

In the eyes of his peers, he is a leader in the field, a clinical expert in the diagnosis and treatment of common thyroid diseases and radionuclide imaging diagnosis, and a prolific author of high-quality academic papers and popular science articles. He has served as an editorial board member or invited reviewer for five renowned medical journals.

In the eyes of patients, he is a renowned physician with superb medical skills and noble medical ethics. Through empathetic understanding, a kind and approachable demeanor, a humorous and witty style, and clear, in-depth explanations, he brings a ray of sunshine into the hearts of patients, illuminating the path to recovery.

He is Liang Hong, Director of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at HeYou Hospital. In his 39-year medical career, he has treated tens of thousands of patients with thyroid diseases, and his page on the “Good Doctor Online” platform has received over 35 million visits.

Taking his joining HeYou Hospital in March of this year as a new starting point, Liang Hong upholds HeYou's founding principle of “benefiting the community and giving back to society,” promoting the harmonious integration of molecular nuclear medicine and precision medicine, and striving to build HeYou's nuclear medicine department into a renowned molecular-targeted integrated diagnosis and treatment center in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Winning Hearts with Skill and Ethics

Over 35 Million Clicks on Online Consultation Platform

A photo has always been saved on Liang Hong's phone — thyroid disease patients surrounding him in layers, their eyes filled with hope.

This was the scene during Liang Hong's consultations at the Department of Nuclear Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, and it was his typical work routine for many years.

“Ensuring every patient who comes can see a doctor.” This is what Liang Hong says, and what he does. On consultation days, after seeing the last patient, it was often 7 or 8 PM, or even after 9 PM.

Although he faced many patients, Liang Hong patiently answered inquiries and provided targeted treatment for each one. “Many patients come from far away, even from other provinces. It is only right to treat every patient with a doctor's benevolence; otherwise, I couldn't live with myself,” he said.

Liang Hong graduated with a bachelor's degree from the Department of Medicine at Hengyang Medical College (now the University of South China) in 1984 and worked in the Internal Medicine Department of its Second Affiliated Hospital for four years. In 1988, he was admitted to Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Sciences (now Sun Yat-sen University) for a master's degree in Nuclear Medicine, and after graduation, he worked long-term at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University. He specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of hyperthyroidism (Graves' disease), Graves' ophthalmopathy, hypothyroidism, and thyroid nodules, as well as Iodine-131 therapy for hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer. He has also accumulated extensive clinical experience in radionuclide imaging diagnosis of the heart, brain, kidneys, bones, and tumors.

Liang Hong is curious about new things, enjoys exploring, and constantly tries to enhance his work with new methods and technologies. With the rise of internet healthcare, Liang Hong officially joined the “Good Doctor Online” platform in June 2009 and has since written hundreds of medical science articles.

Due to his superb medical skills, prompt and accurate responses to patient online consultations, and pioneering the use of reading jump links in related articles on the platform, he quickly became popular on the “Good Doctor Online” platform. At its peak, daily clicks reached 30,000, and the total number of visits has now exceeded 35 million.

Online and offline consultations have given Liang Hong a broader influence and higher professional reputation in the field of thyroid disease diagnosis and treatment. According to incomplete statistics, Liang Hong has cured tens of thousands of thyroid disease patients since he began practicing medicine, and has performed nearly 30,000 Iodine-131 treatments.

“Professor Liang describes your condition in the tone of a family member or friend, which makes you feel at ease.”

“Professor Liang Hong is a ray of sunshine in my heart. His superb medical skills have gradually cured my hyperthyroidism.”

“Dr. Liang is a good doctor who is patient and good at guiding patients. With his help, as a patient, I can live again with a healthy mindset. People often say illness comes from the heart; in fact, a good mindset naturally cures half the disease.”

“Professor Liang prescribes medicine based on the patient's actual condition. He does not blindly exaggerate the superiority of Iodine-131 over drugs and surgery, nor does he dismiss patients with a few words like a drug insert. He is a rare doctor with benevolence and skill who can fully utilize remote diagnosis technology.”

……

Although Liang Hong has been away from the “Good Doctor Online” platform for many years, hundreds of patient reviews remain on the site, from which one can feel the compassion of a doctor dedicated to his patients. Because of this, after Liang Hong started working at HeYou Hospital in March, many patients still come seeking his medical advice.

Ambitious but Not Competitive

Three Important Choices That Shaped a Life

Throughout his medical career, Liang Hong has not only written a large number of easy-to-understand medical science articles but has also led or primarily participated in nearly ten national and provincial-level scientific research projects, publishing over 50 papers. He has won the Third Prize of Guangdong Provincial Medical and Health Science and Technology Progress Award, and several of his projects have won the Second Prize of Sun Yat-sen University Medical Achievement Award. He has served as an editorial board member or invited reviewer for five renowned medical journals.

“Looking back on the path I have taken, three things, or three choices, have influenced my life,” Liang Hong said. “First, persisting in calligraphy practice since childhood; second, choosing to study medicine; and third, choosing to join HeYou.”

When Liang Hong was young, his father used copybooks to teach him to copy famous poems and calligraphy, cultivating a good literary foundation and aesthetic sense from an early age. Writing blackboard newspapers for school or writing slogans in the countryside became his advantage from elementary school through university. “I gradually developed a personality that pursues perfection and meticulousness. For example, if I found a single wrong or poorly written character in my homework, I would tear up the entire page and start over, only stopping when I was satisfied. These experiences were valuable assets in my growth, and I gradually understood that it is important to be ambitious but not deliberately competitive; friendship and unity are the most important things,” Liang Hong said.

Although Liang Hong has spent most of his life dealing with medicine and patients, his first choice for the college entrance examination was not a medical school, but a science and engineering university. “I received the admission notice from the Department of Medicine at Hengyang Medical College (now the University of South China) in the summer of 1979. I was quite disappointed and conflicted at first, but something that happened later solidified my belief in studying and practicing medicine,” Liang Hong recalled.

Shortly after the college entrance exam, Liang Hong's uncle was admitted to the county hospital's emergency department due to a worsening heart condition. When Liang Hong went to visit, he witnessed the dedication of the doctors and nurses in rescuing his uncle. This deeply moved him. On the way home, his mind was filled with images of those busy angels in white; from the depths of his heart, he developed admiration for the medical profession. “I thought, I am holding an admission notice from a medical school in my hand. After I graduate, I should be able to help others alleviate suffering, overcome disease, and regain health and family happiness, just like those doctors,” he said.

This belief drove Liang Hong to take firm and steady steps on the path of studying and practicing medicine. First, with excellent grades, he stayed on to practice medicine at the university after his bachelor's degree, and then chose to pursue a master's degree for further study. In 1991, he graduated with a master's degree from Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Sciences (now Sun Yat-sen University). His graduation thesis was presented at the Guangdong Satellite Conference of the First Youth Academic Annual Meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology, the only medical thesis selected for presentation at the main conference. In 1996, he was exceptionally promoted to associate professor and graduate supervisor two years ahead of schedule, becoming one of only four individuals at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Sciences to receive such an exceptional promotion that year, and also one of the youngest exceptional associate professors and master's supervisors.

In March 2023, after 39 years of medical practice, Liang Hong joined HeYou Hospital to establish the Department of Nuclear Medicine, embarking on a second spring in his career.

Balancing Classics and Innovation

Building a Renowned Molecular-Targeted Integrated Diagnosis and Treatment Center in the Greater Bay Area

In the more than three months since starting at HeYou Hospital, Liang Hong has kept his schedule full. He sees patients with thyroid diseases from all over the country while also planning the development of HeYou's Nuclear Medicine Department from scratch, aiming for a high starting point.

“We are currently organizing the writing of a set of detailed technical operation procedures and report element templates for nuclear medicine, hoping to form a standardized work guide covering the entire clinical diagnosis and treatment process of nuclear medicine. After thorough discussion and finalization, it will be implemented within the department, with the aim of ensuring the provision of high-quality, integrated medical services.” In Liang Hong's view, nuclear medicine is a department primarily focused on examinations, requiring the collective effort of the entire hospital to advance the discipline. However, ensuring quality is the absolute principle, and every detail must be meticulously addressed.

As life expectancy increases, cancer incidence rates are gradually rising, and a significant future prospect for nuclear medicine lies in its application in oncology. Take the increasingly used PET-CT scan as an example. With the continuous development of new specific molecular imaging probes targeting tumors, nuclear medicine molecular imaging can not only provide anatomical localization and morphological changes of lesions but also offer information on molecular-level changes such as tumor cell metabolism and receptors. This is equivalent to being able to trace the clues of a tumor during its “gestation” period. Therefore, nuclear medicine plays an increasingly important role in the early diagnosis of tumors, differentiation between benign and malignant tumors, staging and grading of malignant tumors, prognosis assessment, and efficacy evaluation. At the same time, for well-known conditions such as epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease, nuclear medicine also shows exciting application prospects.

“As a world-renowned enterprise, the name 'Midea' is deeply rooted in people's hearts. Now, 'HeYou,' founded by Mr. He Xiangjian, Midea's founder, with the original public welfare intention of 'benefiting the community and giving back to society,' I believe will certainly live up to the expectations of citizens and patients that the 'trust of life is heavier than Mount Tai.'” Liang Hong stated that he will lead the team with heart, feeling, and love, balancing classics and innovation. He will focus on establishing a center for Iodine-131 treatment of thyroid diseases in the Greater Bay Area, concentrate on the application of PET-CT in oncology and neurodegenerative diseases, and harmoniously integrate molecular nuclear medicine with precision medicine, striving to make HeYou's nuclear medicine a renowned molecular-targeted integrated diagnosis and treatment center in the Greater Bay Area.

■ Quality Medical Notes

The Way of a Physician: Heal the Body and the Mind

Text by Liang Hong

High-quality medical care requires both high medical quality and good service quality.

Medicine is a rapidly developing science. As doctors, we should be committed to our own academic improvement and professional development, constantly updating our knowledge and enhancing our professional competence. Only then can we provide patients with the latest and best treatment options and stay ahead in the fight against disease.

However, the way of a physician is to heal both the body and the mind. We must not only provide patients with first-class technical services and the best treatment plans but also ensure that patients receive humane care and high-quality service while undergoing treatment. This high-quality service includes enhancing the hospital's cultural atmosphere and fostering friendly interaction and communication between doctors and patients.

Therefore, I believe quality medical care has two aspects: improving medical quality to provide accurate diagnosis and treatment, and enhancing service quality to provide patients with a comfortable medical environment where they feel humanistic care.

The combination of superb medical technology and high-quality service is the only way to truly achieve high-quality medical care, allowing every patient to be free from pain while also feeling our care and respect.