Foshan High-Quality Oncology Medical Resources Downward Expansion Initiative and Oncology Specialty Alliance Inauguration Ceremony Held at HeYou Hospital

To promote the sharing of oncology specialty resources, facilities, and collaborative development among hospitals in the city, enhance the standardized diagnosis and treatment of oncological diseases, and advance the balanced development of oncology services, on June 30, 2025, the “Foshan High-Quality Oncology Medical Resources Downward Expansion Initiative and Foshan Oncology Specialty Alliance Inauguration Ceremony,” hosted by the Foshan Municipal Health Bureau, was held at HeYou Hospital.

Wu Renhao, Deputy Director of the Foshan Municipal Health Bureau; Guan Yuqing, Third-Level Researcher; Tang Linglong, Professor from the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center; Lu Jiade, Vice President of HeYou Hospital, Director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the HeYou Proton and Heavy Ion Center; along with hospital leaders in charge of oncology departments, heads of oncology departments, and key clinical experts from secondary-level and above hospitals with oncology departments in Foshan, attended the event.

Establishing a Multi-Tiered Cancer Prevention and Treatment Service Network

Attendees first toured the HeYou Hospital outpatient clinic and the Proton and Heavy Ion Center. The modern outpatient layout, comfortable medical environment, and cutting-edge medical equipment left a profound impression on everyone.

During the meeting, Guan Yuqing, Third-Level Researcher of the Foshan Municipal Health Bureau, emphasized the need to strengthen regional collaboration, build a multi-tiered cancer prevention and treatment service network spanning the province, city, district, and township levels, and establish a smooth two-way referral mechanism to enable patients to access diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation services at various stages more conveniently. He also stressed the importance of promoting standardized oncology treatment, enhancing multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment, and exploring the integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine in cancer treatment to provide experience for the province and the nation. Furthermore, he called for strengthening medical quality control, particularly in oncology and oncology drug clinical trials, by diligently studying and strictly implementing relevant national laws, regulations, and standards.

Professor Tang Linglong from the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center delivered a specialized training session titled “Advances in Target Volume Delineation for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Radiotherapy.” Leveraging his profound academic expertise and extensive clinical experience, Professor Tang explained the latest research findings and clinical application cases of target volume delineation for nasopharyngeal carcinoma radiotherapy in an accessible manner.

HeYou Proton and Heavy Ion Center Scheduled for Clinical Use in 2027

Lu Jiade, Vice President of HeYou Hospital, Director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the HeYou Proton and Heavy Ion Center, presented the progress of the HeYou Proton and Heavy Ion project at the meeting.

This integrated proton and heavy ion treatment system, the first of its kind in the Greater Bay Area and the second in China, leverages the unique physical characteristics of the “Bragg Peak” to achieve sub-millimeter precision in targeting tumor cells, earning it the reputation as a “cancer-fighting weapon.” The center is expected to commence clinical validation in 2027, offering patients with nearly all solid tumors, particularly high-incidence cancers in Guangdong such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma and lung cancer, internationally advanced treatment options characterized by precise targeting, high efficacy, non-invasiveness, short treatment courses, and minimal side effects.

Establishment of the Foshan Oncology Specialty Alliance

Huang Weijun, Vice President of the First People's Hospital of Foshan, along with relevant experts, presented the progress of the high-quality oncology medical resources downward expansion initiative in Guangdong Province and Foshan City.

At the meeting, the Foshan Oncology Specialty Alliance was officially established. Led by the First People's Hospital of Foshan, the alliance includes 13 medical institutions as initial partner units, such as the Foshan Maternal and Child Health Hospital, the Sixth Affiliated Hospital of South China University of Technology, and the Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University. The alliance aims to jointly promote the downward expansion of high-quality resources, build a city-district-township cancer prevention and treatment network, and enhance specialty diagnosis and treatment capabilities.

With the in-depth implementation of the high-quality oncology medical resources downward expansion initiative, citizens will enjoy more convenient, efficient, and high-quality cancer prevention and treatment services.

HeYou Hospital will also actively build a full-chain cancer prevention and treatment system encompassing “prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment, and rehabilitation,” promote the co-construction and sharing of high-quality medical resources, and inject new momentum into the construction of a Healthy Foshan.

HeYou Contributes to the High-Quality Development of Non-Public Medical Oncology Radiotherapy

Lu Jiade, Vice President of HeYou Hospital, Director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the HeYou Proton and Heavy Ion Center, is a nationally recognized high-level talent, Chief Scientist of a key R&D program of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Distinguished Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at Soochow University, and former Executive Vice President of the Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Hospital and Vice Dean of the National University of Singapore's Faculty of Medicine. With nearly three decades of experience in oncology radiotherapy, he is dedicated to precise and accurate radiation therapy for tumors, particularly excelling in multidisciplinary comprehensive treatment for head and neck, central nervous system, and gastrointestinal tumors, as well as tumor molecular biology research and targeted therapy. During his tenure at the Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Hospital, he filled a historical gap in China's proton and heavy ion therapy, achieving numerous global firsts in terms of disease types treated, patient volume, therapeutic efficacy, and research and development. The efficacy of various refractory cancers comprehensively surpassed international standards. Currently, the Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Hospital has treated over 8,000 patients with particle therapy, making it the hospital with the highest number of particle therapy patients in China.

HeYou Hospital has partnered with Soochow University to establish the South China Clinical Center of the State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection (Soochow University). This center is led by Chai Zhifang, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Dean of the School of Radiation Medicine and Protection at Soochow University's Suzhou Medical College. It brings together numerous high-level experts, forming a powerful synergy between clinical practice and scientific research. The center aims to address international frontiers in radiation medicine, closely align with major national strategic needs such as Healthy China, nuclear energy development, and national security, and conduct high-level research on radiobiological effects and mechanisms, advanced radiation diagnosis and treatment, and radiation protection. The center will fully leverage Soochow University's research strengths in radiation medicine, combined with HeYou Hospital's clinical advantages in proton and heavy ion radiotherapy, to jointly advance the development of radiation medicine.

As one of the main founding units, HeYou Hospital participated in the preparatory work for the Tumor Radiotherapy Branch of the China Non-Public Medical Institutions Association and hosted the first preparatory symposium and the first HeYou Oncology Radiotherapy Academic Seminar. HeYou is committed to participating in the preparation and promotion of the branch to play a role as an industry bridge, integrate advantageous resources, enhance the standardization and precision of tumor radiotherapy in non-public medical institutions in China, effectively improve the quality and efficiency of tumor radiotherapy, and help usher in a new stage of high-quality development for non-public medical oncology radiotherapy in China.

According to Lu Jiade, the Chinese edition of the book “Target Volume Delineation and Field Setup: A Practical Guide for Conformal and Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (Second Edition),” for which he served as a co-editor, is scheduled for publication in August. This book is a practical clinical reference meticulously compiled for radiation oncologists, focusing on two core technologies crucial to the radiotherapy process: target volume delineation and field setup. Precise target volume delineation not only determines the local control effect of radiotherapy but also directly impacts the incidence of adverse reactions, making it key to improving radiotherapy quality and ensuring patient safety. With the widespread global application of advanced technologies such as 3D conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT), intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), there is an increasing demand for standardization and systematization in target volume delineation. This book was developed in response to this need, aiming to help clinicians enhance their practical skills and treatment quality.