Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital

A national key clinical specialty and core internal medicine platform of the National Clinical Research Center for Malignant Tumors, setting a benchmark for precision treatment of solid tumors in China; it has built an integrated system encompassing neoadjuvant therapy, postoperative adjuvant therapy, advanced palliative care, salvage therapy after drug resistance, and new drug clinical research, with molecular subtyping-guided chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, endocrine therapy, and anti-angiogenesis as its core. It benchmarks itself against MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States and the Department of Internal Medicine at the National Cancer Center of Japan, specializing in anti-angiogenesis in advanced lung cancer and diffuse large B-cell tumors. The Department of Oncology at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital is one of the top institutions in my country for molecular subtyping of cell lymphoma in the Chinese population, management of endocrine drug resistance in breast cancer, and immunomodulatory conversion therapy for gastrointestinal tumors. It has gradually developed from the first oncology department in New China, founded by Professor Jin Xianzhai, the founder of Chinese oncology medicine, in 1952. It is a national key clinical specialty and a core component of the National Clinical Research Center for Malignant Tumors. The discipline boasts a flagship advantage in precision treatment of digestive system tumors, a core technological barrier in clinical research of new drugs for lung tumors, a distinctive diagnostic and treatment paradigm based on the "Tianjin Model" for the whole-process management of breast tumors, and a cutting-edge breakthrough direction in the precision treatment of hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumors using yttrium-90 microspheres. It is positioned as a core authoritative center for clinical research of new anti-tumor drugs in China and a leader in standardized diagnosis and treatment of oncology nationwide.

Historical Origins and Spiritual Inheritance:

Founded in 1861, the hospital established the first oncology department in New China in 1952 under Professor Jin Xianzhai, which later developed into the birthplace of oncology in my country. As the core internal medicine department of the hospital, the Department of Medical Oncology has undergone systematic development through subspecialties such as gastroenterology oncology, pulmonary oncology, breast oncology, hepatobiliary and pancreatic oncology, and lymphoma. Adhering to the principle of "high moral character and medical excellence, innovation and perfection," the hospital drives departmental development through innovation and clinical practice through research. All subspecialties share a common gene: updating diagnostic and treatment standards through clinical research.

Core business operational efficiency:

The Department of Oncology ranks among the top in China in terms of the scale of its various subspecialties. The Department of Gastroenterology Oncology has 65 fixed beds, sees nearly 20,000 patients annually, and has designed, undertaken, and participated in over 40 national and global multicenter clinical studies in the past five years. The Department of Pulmonary Oncology is one of the core authoritative centers for new drug clinical research in lung cancer in China, with 41 research staff. The Department of Breast Oncology, established in 1997, currently has 20 physicians, 30 nurses, and 70 approved beds, with 41,381 outpatient visits and 8,682 inpatient admissions annually. A high proportion of patients are from outside the local area, and patient satisfaction exceeds 99%. The Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Oncology is a leader in China in personalized precision treatment. The Department of Lymphoma was established in 1978 (formerly the Department of Chemotherapy) and renamed the Department of Lymphoma in 1998. It is one of the largest centers for the diagnosis and treatment of malignant tumors of the lymphatic system in China.

Discipline Positioning and Benchmarking:

It is a national key clinical specialty and a national clinical research center for malignant tumors (first batch in 2017). The oncology department is a national key discipline and a national "Double First-Class" construction discipline. The hospital focuses on building a comprehensive system encompassing prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation, achieving a 5-year overall survival rate of 78.7%, with some high-incidence cancers exceeding 90%. The hospital has constructed a "five-in-one" rehabilitation service system covering physical rehabilitation, nutritional rehabilitation, pain rehabilitation, psychological rehabilitation, and palliative care, promoting medical service coverage throughout the patient's entire life cycle.

Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital is the birthplace of oncology in my country, founded by Professor Jin Xianzhai, the founder of oncology medicine in China. It is among the first batch of national clinical medical research centers for malignant tumors, a national key discipline of oncology, and a key discipline under the national "Double First-Class" initiative. The hospital's Department of Surgical Oncology uses the da Vinci robotic minimally invasive surgery system as its landmark technology platform, with function preservation and reconstructive surgery as its core concept. It has advantages in gastric cancer function preservation surgery, esophageal cancer minimally invasive surgery, lung cancer precision surgery, and breast tumor plastic surgery. It is positioned as a leader in the transformation of minimally invasive and precision oncological surgery in China and a core base for the training of oncological surgical talents nationwide. The hospital has four national key clinical specialties: thoracic surgery, oncology, nursing, and pathology. It currently has three da Vinci surgical robots and has completed more than 10,000 surgeries, building a precision minimally invasive treatment system covering multiple disciplines.

Historical Origins and Spiritual Inheritance:

Founded by Professor Jin Xianzhai, the founder of oncology in China, the hospital's oncology department is a key discipline of the Ministry of Education and a key discipline under Tianjin Medical University's "211 Project," offering doctoral degrees and a postdoctoral research station. In 1972, Professor Jin established the Department of Abdominal Oncology, which later diversified into subspecialties such as Gastric Oncology, Colorectal Oncology, and Hepatobiliary Oncology, laying the foundation for the discipline's surgical oncology structure. The hospital currently has over 2,000 beds, performs over 10,000 surgeries annually, and boasts one academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 56 doctoral supervisors, 162 master's supervisors, 23 national-level talents, and 108 provincial and ministerial-level talents.

Core business operational efficiency:

The hospital's surgical oncology subspecialties rank among the top in the country in terms of scale of diagnosis and treatment. The pulmonary oncology department has 136 beds, performing over 5,000 surgeries annually, with minimally invasive surgeries accounting for over 97%. The colorectal oncology department has 73 beds, performing over 1,200 surgeries annually, with colorectal cancer surgeries accounting for over 90%. The hepatobiliary oncology department has 118 beds, performing over 2,000 surgeries annually, with a bed occupancy rate of 110%. The esophageal oncology minimally invasive surgery department performs 400 thoracic surgeries annually, with a minimally invasive surgery rate of over 80%, and its robotic surgeries are among the most advanced in the country. The gastric oncology department has 65 beds, performing over 1,200 surgeries annually, with minimally invasive surgeries accounting for over 80%. The intensive care unit has implemented ERAS (Enhanced Recovery After Surgery) standardized management for thousands of gastric and lung cancer patients. The postoperative discharge time for gastric cancer patients has been shortened from 9-12 days to 5-7 days, and for lung cancer patients from 7-8 days to 3-5 days.

Discipline Positioning and Benchmarking:

It was among the first batch of National Clinical Research Centers for Malignant Tumors (2017), a National Key Discipline of Oncology, and a key discipline under the National "Double First-Class" Initiative. Thoracic Surgery was among the first batch of National Key Clinical Specialties (2011). In 2020, it became the National Clinical Demonstration Center for Lung Cancer Surgery Using the Da Vinci Surgical Robot; and in 2020, it became the second National "Clinical Demonstration and Teaching Center for Esophageal Surgery Using the Da Vinci Surgical Robot". In terms of international benchmarking, the hospital has jointly established the Sino-Russian Joint Research Center for Breast Tumor Plastic Surgery and the Sino-Russian Joint Research Center for Bone Metastasis of Malignant Tumors (Tianjin "Belt and Road" Joint Laboratory) with the Petrov National Cancer Institute of Russia. They have jointly obtained approval for two National Natural Science Foundation of China projects and jointly published 35 SCI papers.

A national key clinical specialty and Tianjin Breast Cancer Prevention and Treatment Research Center, it is a benchmark for comprehensive breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in China. With the core concept of radical tumor resection + oncoplastic surgery + molecular subtyping and individualized whole-process management, it has constructed an integrated system encompassing early screening, neoadjuvant conversion therapy, minimally invasive radical resection, breast reconstruction, postoperative systemic treatment, and upper limb lymphedema rehabilitation. Benchmarking against the MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States and the Breast Surgery Department of the National Cancer Center of Japan, it is a leading institution in China for breast-conserving surgery and sentinel lymph node biopsy for early breast cancer, immediate breast reconstruction with DIEP free flap, neoadjuvant downstaging surgery for locally advanced breast cancer, and precision conversion therapy for triple-negative breast cancer. The Department of Breast Surgery at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital was founded in 1971 by Professor Jin Xianzhai, the founder of oncology medicine in China. It is the core clinical unit of the Tianjin Breast Cancer Prevention and Research Center, a national key clinical specialty, and a key department of the National Clinical Research Center for Malignant Tumors. The department has made historical contributions by being among the first in China to perform breast-conserving surgery and sentinel lymph node biopsy. Its signature strength lies in the "Tianzhong Model" of breast reconstruction, and its cutting-edge breakthrough in AI-powered precision diagnosis is BRIGHT, a large-scale vertical model for breast pathology. It is positioned as the origin of standardized breast cancer surgery in China and a core base for the international promotion of breast reconstruction techniques. At the 5th Tianjin International Breast Cancer Conference in 2025, the hospital officially released the BRIGHT vertical model of breast pathology and five-year survival data of malignant tumors, promoting the "Tianjin Model" of breast tumor diagnosis and treatment to the world.

Historical Origins and Spiritual Inheritance:

In 1971, Professor Jin Xianzhai proposed the establishment of the Department of Breast Oncology, which is the academic birthplace of the Breast Cancer Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (founded in 1986). In 1998, due to specialization, the department was divided into three wards: Breast Oncology Departments I, II, and III, which subsequently became independent. Professor Zhang Jin, as the Chairman of the Breast Cancer Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association and the Executive Deputy Director of the Tianjin Breast Cancer Prevention and Treatment Research Center, has practiced medicine for 37 years. She pioneered key technologies such as breast-conserving surgery and sentinel lymph node biopsy for breast cancer, propelling Tianjin's breast cancer diagnosis and treatment level to rank among the top single centers in the country and even the world for 20 consecutive years.

Core business operational efficiency:

The department currently comprises three breast oncology wards (Department 1, Department 2, and Department 3) and a breast reconstruction department. Department 1, established in 1998, has 41 beds and is renowned nationwide for its advanced surgical techniques. It performs a wide range of complex surgeries annually, including those for elderly breast cancer, advanced breast cancer, and rare breast tumors. It performs nearly a thousand radical mastectomies for breast cancer each year, while also promoting breast-conserving surgery and pioneering nationally leading breast reconstruction and plastic surgery techniques. Department 2 has 14 breast oncology experts. In the past five years, it has undertaken four National Natural Science Foundation of China projects and three municipal science and technology commission projects, published over 20 SCI papers and over 100 papers in Chinese core journals, and participated in several large-scale, multi-center phase III clinical trials nationwide. Professor Zhang Jin's team has undertaken more than 30 national and provincial-level research projects, published nearly 200 papers as the first or corresponding author (more than 70 of which are SCI-indexed), and led or participated in the development of more than 40 clinical diagnosis and treatment guidelines and consensus for breast cancer.

Discipline Positioning and Benchmarking:

It is a core unit of the Tianjin Breast Cancer Prevention and Research Center and the chair unit of the Breast Cancer Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (Professor Zhang Jin serves as the 10th chair). The "Tianjin International Breast Cancer Conference" has been held for ten consecutive sessions and has become an overseas venue for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Breast Cancer Conference. In 2025, the hospital will release the BRIGHT vertical model of breast pathology, which will be trained based on more than 60,000 whole breast pathology images from more than 20 tertiary hospitals across the country, constructing one of the largest and most complete breast pathology data systems in China. The hospital has explored the "Tianjin Model" of breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, which is "single-disease, multi-disciplinary, and integrated," providing patients with comprehensive diagnosis and treatment strategies "all-round and throughout the entire cycle."