Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
The Department of Oncology at Guang'anmen Hospital of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences was established in 1963, pioneered by predecessors such as Yu Guiqing, Duan Fengwu, and Zhang Daizhao. It is one of the earliest TCM oncology specialties in China. The department is currently a national (TCM) oncology medical center (under guidance category in 2021), a national regional TCM oncology treatment center, a key discipline/specialty of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the chairman unit of the Oncology Branch of the China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the president unit of the Oncology Professional Committee of the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, and the chairman unit of the International Alliance of TCM Oncology. It is hailed as the "national team" of TCM oncology. With "strengthening the body's resistance and integrating Chinese and Western medicine" as its core philosophy, the department takes the whole-cycle prevention and treatment of malignant tumors with traditional Chinese medicine as its landmark advantage and positions itself as the core source of clinical, scientific and talent training in oncology in China.
Historical Origins and Spiritual Inheritance:
In 1963, pioneers such as Yu Guiqing, Duan Fengwu, and Zhang Daizhao established the department, making it one of the earliest TCM oncology departments in the country. From its initial outpatient clinic to the establishment of inpatient wards in 1974, and now to its current status as the hospital's largest department with 5 wards, 200 beds, and nearly 300,000 outpatient visits annually, the department has developed into a national-level TCM and integrated TCM-Western medicine oncology discipline that integrates medical treatment, teaching, and research, thanks to the continuous efforts of four generations of experts over the past 62 years. The department pioneered the "strengthening the body's resistance and nourishing the root" approach to tumor treatment, leading national research. Later, under the leadership of professors Lin Hongsheng, Hua Baojin, and Hou Wei, the academic thought of "consolidating the foundation and clearing the source" was formed. Professor Hua Baojin further proposed the theory of "regulating qi and detoxifying," completing the extension of the focus of understanding from "deficiency of the body's resistance" to "excess of pathogenic factors." As the current dean, Professor Li Jie has innovatively proposed a five-stage dialectical system of "deficiency-cold-toxin-closure-decay" based on the core pathogenesis evolution of malignant tumors throughout their entire life cycle.
Core business operational efficiency:
The department currently has 200 beds, with nearly 300,000 outpatient visits and over 3,500 inpatient discharges annually. It boasts 8 doctoral supervisors and 14 master's supervisors, including 1 nationally renowned TCM doctor, 2 Beijing renowned TCM doctors, and 2 national TCM clinical talents. It has trained over 100 master's and doctoral students and over 30 postdoctoral fellows. As a clinical trial institution for oncology drugs designated by the National Medical Products Administration, it has conducted 43 clinical trials of new anti-cancer TCM drugs and independently developed a series of in-house formulations, including Xihuang Jiedu Capsules, Lung Tumor-Smoothing Ointment, Fuzheng Jiedu Oral Liquid, Jianpi Yishen Granules, and Ruanjian Xiaoliu Tablets.
Discipline Positioning and Benchmarking:
The department is a founding unit of the National (Traditional Chinese Medicine Oncology) Medical Center (2021), a National Regional Traditional Chinese Medicine Oncology Diagnosis and Treatment Center (2017), a Key Research Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Oncology of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (1996), and a Level III Laboratory of Tumor Cell Biology (2003). The department spearheaded the development of TCM diagnosis and treatment guidelines for 10 common malignant tumors and the "WHO Western Pacific Region Clinical Guidelines for Evidence-Based Medicine in Traditional Chinese Medicine (Lung Cancer)." It also organized the compilation of my country's first "Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines for Tumors in Traditional Chinese Medicine" and promoted it in English, filling a gap both domestically and internationally. The department has received two second-class National Science and Technology Progress Awards and three first-class Science and Technology Progress Awards from the China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the China Association of Integrative Medicine. In terms of international benchmarking, the department has collaborated with the US NCI, Mayo Clinic, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to jointly train more than 10 doctoral (postdoctoral) doctors, and the results have been promoted to 32 countries in Japan, South Korea, Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States.
