Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital Unveils Multiple Cutting‑Edge Clinical Technologies Across Key Fields

Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital Unveils Multiple Cutting‑Edge Clinical Technologies Across Key Fields

In the ancient Silk Road city, gathering momentum for a new journey, precision medical technologies safeguard public health. On May 22, the Multi‑Field Clinical New Technology Media Briefing of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital was held at the Wuwei Heavy Ion Center of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital. Over twenty mainstream media outlets, including CRI Online, People's Daily Online, Xinhuanet, CNR Online, Phoenix New Media, Gansu Daily, and Gansu Broadcasting Television, gathered in Wuwei to thoroughly explore the hospital's achievements in discipline development, comprehensively learn about the hospital's cutting‑edge new technologies in precision radiotherapy, radionuclide targeted therapy, minimally invasive surgery, interventional diagnosis and treatment, and intensive care, and witness the new accomplishments in the high‑quality development of regional cancer diagnosis and treatment.

When disciplines thrive, healthcare thrives. For a long time, the hospital has consistently regarded discipline development as the core engine of high‑quality growth, strategically focusing on advantageous disease areas and prioritizing the cultivation of three major diagnostic and treatment brands: oncology, digestive diseases, and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, forming a well‑structured, complementary, and synergistic disciplinary cluster. Currently, the hospital has 6 provincial‑level key disciplines and 14 municipal‑level key disciplines, with 2 national‑level key discipline cultivation programs progressing steadily and achieving phased results. Concurrently, three major emergency centers—for chest pain, stroke, and trauma—have been established to high standards, positioning the hospital's capacity for critical and emergency care and comprehensive diagnosis and treatment of complex diseases at the forefront of Northwest China. The hospital is also deepening digital smart healthcare construction, strengthening whole‑process medical quality management, empowering diagnostic and treatment quality improvement through smart technology, and safeguarding medical safety with rigorous quality control, laying a solid foundation for the standardized application of various new clinical technologies.

In the field of conventional radiotherapy, the hospital is equipped with top‑tier linear accelerators from Varian and Elekta, as well as a helical tomotherapy system, enabling the routine implementation of advanced techniques such as image‑guided radiotherapy, stereotactic body radiotherapy, three‑dimensional brachytherapy, and lattice radiotherapy. Relying on refined and individualized treatment planning, the hospital addresses a wide variety of clinical scenarios, including curative treatment for early‑stage tumors, palliative care for advanced disease, and management of complex and refractory tumors. Among these, lattice radiotherapy offers a novel treatment option specifically for large, refractory tumors that cannot be treated by conventional means.

In the field of radionuclide targeted therapy, the hospital is equipped with advanced nuclear medicine diagnostic imaging devices such as SPECT/CT and PET/CT, establishing a comprehensive diagnosis and treatment system integrating precision imaging screening, in‑house radiopharmaceutical preparation, and integrated internal irradiation diagnosis and therapy. Leveraging the province‑leading in‑house radiopharmaceutical research and development platform, the hospital has maturely implemented a range of radionuclide diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, including ¹³¹I therapy for hyperthyroidism, ⁹⁰Sr-⁹⁰Y radionuclide applicator therapy for keloids and hemangiomas, ⁸⁹Sr therapy for bone metastases, ¹²⁵I seed implantation therapy, ¹³¹I therapy for differentiated thyroid cancer, and ⁹⁰Y resin microsphere interventional therapy for liver cancer, benefiting several thousand patients. The hospital successfully performed the first domestically produced Yttrium‑90 microsphere interventional procedure in the Gansu‑Qinghai‑Ningxia‑Xinjiang region, advancing regional interventional therapy for liver cancer into a new era of precision radionuclide treatment. Subsequently, ²²³Ra radium dichloride therapy will be introduced into clinical practice, specifically for bone metastases in advanced prostate cancer; ¹⁷⁷Lu targeted therapy will officially launch in June, primarily serving patients with metastatic prostate cancer. In the future, new targeted radionuclide technologies such as ²²⁵Ac targeted therapy and ²¹¹At astatine‑targeted radiotherapy will also be successively implemented, addressing the gaps in the radionuclide therapy industry in Northwest China.

SPECT/CT

PET/CT

¹³¹I Hyperthyroidism treatment

⁹⁰Sr-⁹⁰Y Radionuclide application therapy

⁸⁹Sr Treatment of metastatic bone cancer

¹²⁵I Particle implantation therapy

⁹⁰Y Resin microsphere interventional therapy

In the field of surgical diagnosis and treatment, the hospital adheres to the principles of precision, minimally invasive, and enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS). Leveraging advanced equipment such as the domestically produced Toumai surgical robot and high‑end endoscopic systems, the hospital performs a full range of complex surgical procedures. These routinely include Toumai robotic surgery, laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy, laparoscopic radical resection for gastrointestinal tumors, NOSES (Natural Orifice Specimen Extraction Surgery) procedures, lateral lymph node dissection, endoscope‑assisted breast surgery, endoscope‑assisted thyroid surgery, and single‑port thoracoscopic/laparoscopic tumor surgery. In orthopedics, the hospital performs anterior lumbar corpectomy with 3D‑printed reconstruction and anterior cervical vertebroplasty with bone cement. In reconstructive surgery, it offers total pelvic floor reconstruction using biological mesh and breast reconstruction after mastectomy. In the field of minimally invasive frontiers, the hospital conducts techniques such as spontaneous‑breathing anesthesia single‑port thoracoscopic surgery, percutaneous transhepatic one‑stage choledochoscopic lithotripsy and stone extraction, image‑guided ablation therapy, and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). Many of these surgical techniques are at the leading level in the region, maximizing the reduction of surgical trauma and facilitating rapid patient recovery.

Laparoscopic radical resection of gastrointestinal tumors

Laparoscopic Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Robotic radical resection of rectal cancer with NOSES surgery

3D printing reconstruction surgery

Percutaneous Transhepatic One-stage Biliary Puncture Lithotripsy and Lithotomy

The field of internal medicine covers multiple specialties including digestive endoscopy, intensive care, oncology, and cardiovascular/cerebrovascular intervention. The hospital performs endoscopic minimally invasive procedures such as endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), combined laparoscopic‑endoscopic techniques, endoscopic ultrasound‑guided biliary drainage (EUS‑BD), and transcecal appendectomy using NOSES. The hospital utilizes artificial liver support systems, continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to establish a robust defense for emergency and critical care. It also maturely implements targeted therapy and immunotherapy, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and "no‑blind‑spot within the lung" biopsy techniques for oncology and hematology. Additionally, the hospital routinely performs cardiovascular and cerebrovascular interventional procedures, including three‑dimensional mapping‑guided electrophysiological radiofrequency ablation, interventional closure of congenital heart defects, treatment of complex cerebral aneurysms, carotid artery stenosis treatment, and precise diagnosis and treatment of intracranial lesions, thereby comprehensively enhancing the level of care for common, complex, and critical diseases.

Combined laparoscopy and digestive endoscopy technology

Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Biliary Drainage (EUS-BD)

Laparoscopic appendectomy via NOSES technique

Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

As the birthplace of domestically produced heavy ion technology and the "Jinggangshan" of ion radiotherapy in China, heavy ion technology serves as the hospital's flagship advanced capability, forming a dual‑center linkage structure between Wuwei and Lanzhou. Leveraging nine world‑first or domestically first technologies—including precision heavy ion therapy under ventilator control, bladder cancer treatment with precise bladder capacity management, and single‑fraction treatment using surgically implanted spacers between organs and tumors—the hospital has opened new hope for patients with complex conditions. Heavy ion therapy is indicated for over 100 types of malignant tumors and has cumulatively served over 2,800 patients from various provinces and cities across China as well as from multiple countries overseas. For many tumor types, treatment outcomes have surpassed international levels in this field, making the hospital a core window for China's advanced cancer radiotherapy to reach the world. Cutting‑edge heavy ion radiotherapy, together with the hospital's new technologies in surgery, internal medicine, nuclear medicine, and other multidisciplinary fields, complement and empower each other, collectively building a multi‑level, comprehensive cancer prevention and treatment barrier at our hospital.

To ensure that advanced medical technologies truly benefit more patients, Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital has innovatively established a full‑chain "medical + insurance + aviation" support system. In collaboration with China Life Insurance, the hospital has introduced a "million‑level medical insurance + green access channel for heavy ion therapy," providing up to 5.55 million RMB in medical coverage and one‑stop reimbursement services, thereby alleviating the financial burden on patients.

Guo Yishan, Head of the Publicity and Organization Section, hosting the meeting

Cai Qinghua, Vice President of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital, delivering a speech

Mr. Zhou Guangqiang, Deputy General Manager of China Life Insurance Company Wuwei Branch, delivering a speech

Mr. Jiang Wei, Project Leader of the "Million Medical Insurance + Green Life Access Channel for Heavy Ion Therapy" (Wuwei Branch, China Life Insurance Company), explaining the exclusive insurance plan in detail

Nie Peng, Vice President of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital, delivering a report on Promotion of New Clinical Application Technologies

Media Questions Expert Q&A

Striving for excellence on a hundred‑foot pole, forging ahead on a new journey. The implementation of diverse cutting‑edge technologies marks a new level of achievement in our hospital's comprehensive cancer diagnosis and treatment capabilities. In the next phase, our hospital will continue to deepen its presence in the precision medicine arena, integrating the flagship heavy ion technology with multidisciplinary innovation advantages, continuously breaking through technical barriers and unlocking new diagnostic and treatment paradigms. With dedication to medical craftsmanship and commitment to public health, we will comprehensively upgrade our capacity to treat complex tumors and critical illnesses, wholeheartedly benefit patients along the Silk Road, support the high‑quality development of healthcare in Northwest China, and write a new chapter in the development of regional cancer care in the new era.

Meeting Highlights

Written by: Guo Yishan

First review: Duan Shengyu

Second review: Guo Yishan

Third review: Cai Qinghua