Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital’s Gastroenterology Department Reports Another Success

Upholding Tradition and Innovating to Serve the People – Key Disciplines Showcase New Achievements: Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital’s Gastroenterology Department Reports Another Success

On July 14, the "2025 National Training Program for Early Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer – Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer Early Diagnosis and Treatment (Rural) Training Workshop – Gansu Lanzhou Station" was held in Lanzhou. The Gastroenterology Department of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital delivered an outstanding performance in this national competition: The team of Xin Liang and Li Shuangyan won the first prize in the Endoscopy-Pathology Joint Competition. Additionally, they secured the Pathology Quality Control Award, Outstanding Population Screening Unit Award, and the Answer-pad Team Excellence Award. Xie Chunfang, Li Shihua, Wang Guihao, Zhang Yongqiang, Zhao Shengyu, Gao Haiyan, Lu Linzhi, Liu Jindian, Zhao Guangyuan, and Zhu Xiaolan received the "Answer-pad Individual Endoscopy Excellence Award," while Li Shuangyan was awarded the "Answer-pad Individual Pathology Excellence Award." These multiple honors highlight the department’s national leadership in early cancer screening and pathological diagnosis.

Within the landscape of gastrointestinal disease prevention and treatment in western China, the Gastroenterology Department of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital has built a comprehensive system spanning clinical diagnosis and treatment to early cancer prevention and control through two decades of dedication, continuous technological breakthroughs, and a commitment to public health. It has not only become a benchmark for regional medical excellence but has also provided a replicable "Wuwei Model" for grassroots cancer prevention and treatment nationwide, offering valuable western experience.

Setting Technological Benchmarks: Innovation Breakthroughs Build a High-Level Diagnosis and Treatment Platform

The Gastroenterology Department of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital, with technological innovation at its core, has continuously achieved breakthroughs in minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment, early cancer screening, and other fields, setting multiple "firsts in the province" and "provincial records":

Continuous technological breakthroughs: In 2023, the department successfully performed endoscopic transcecal appendectomy. In 2024, it accomplished Gansu's first robot-assisted endoscopic transanal appendectomy without abdominal scarring. In 2025, it successively mastered dual-endoscopy (gastroscopy + laparoscopy) combined radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer and performed Gansu's first endoscopic ultrasound-guided biliary drainage (EUS-BD), repeatedly pioneering new frontiers in minimally invasive techniques.

Leading in clinical data: For eight consecutive years, it has maintained the highest number and examination rate of painless endoscopies in the province, the highest detection rate of upper gastrointestinal cancers among all hospitals in Gansu, and the highest volume of ESD treatments in the province. It previously won first place in the National Endoscopy-Pathology Diagnosis and Treatment Technology Competition.

Top-tier equipment configuration: Equipped with 2 endoscopy centers and 15 procedure rooms, featuring nearly 20 suspended Olympus endoscopy systems and over 50 various endoscopes (including enteroscopes, endoscopic ultrasound, chromoendoscopy and magnifying endoscopes). Installed with China's first domestically produced Toumai four-arm surgical robot and Gansu province's first super-iterative PET-CT, totaling more than 300 high-end devices, providing solid hardware support for precision diagnosis and treatment.

Building the Foundation with Talent: Elite Team Strengthens Development Confidence

Leveraging the prevention and treatment needs of Wuwei's high-incidence gastric cancer region, the hospital has established a high-level multidisciplinary team led by top experts, injecting sustained momentum into disciplinary development.

International Expert Joins: On July 5, renowned Japanese gastroenterologist Professor Kohei Takizawa newly joined Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital. On the same day, he conducted surgical training in the endoscopy center and delivered standardized teaching at the "2025 Wuwei Medical Association Gastroenterology Professional Committee Annual Conference." As a specially appointed professor, he will work regularly at the hospital over the next three years. Through continuous hands-on mentoring and technical guidance, he will support the development of the gastroenterology department as a national key specialty while promoting the optimization and upgrading of heavy ion therapy for digestive system tumors.

Professor Kohei Takizawa from Kanagawa Prefectural Hospital Cancer Center, Japan.

Core expert leadership: The gastroenterology team is led by a group of senior experts including: Chief Physician Zhang Zhiyi, a leading talent in Gansu Provincial Health System, Wuwei City's leading talent, founder of Wuwei Cancer Hospital's Gastroenterology Department, and Chief Expert of Gastroenterology Department and Director of Endoscopy Center; Chief Physician Wu Zhengqi, a first-grade chief physician, Gansu Provincial leading talent, Gansu Provincial Advanced Worker, and discipline leader; Chief Physician Lu Linzhi, Chairman of Wuwei Digestive Diseases Professional Committee; Chief Physician Zhang Wenhong (Master of Medicine); Deputy Chief Physician Zhao Guangyuan (Master of Medicine); Deputy Chief Physician Li Shihua; Deputy Chief Physician Liu Jindian (Master of Medicine); and Deputy Chief Physician Xie Chunfang.

Multidisciplinary collaboration: Working in cooperation with numerous senior digestive surgery experts including: Chief Physician Nie Peng, Vice President of the hospital; Chief Physician Chen Hongbing; Chief Physician Teng Tingpeng; Deputy Chief Physician Li Shigong; Deputy Chief Physician Tao Jichun; Deputy Chief Physician Wang Jihong; Deputy Chief Physician Wang Jisheng; and Deputy Chief Physician Su Fade, they have established a multidisciplinary, rationally-structured "talent system" that provides solid support for the diagnosis and treatment of complex diseases.

Model Benefits the People: Early Diagnosis and Treatment Safeguards Public Health

As a key region with high incidence of gastric cancer in China, Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital has dedicated twenty years to early diagnosis and treatment of upper gastrointestinal cancers, establishing the nationally renowned "Wuwei Model":

Remarkable prevention and control achievements: Through continuous population screening under major national healthcare reform projects like the "Rural Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer Early Diagnosis and Treatment Program," the incidence rate of gastric cancer in Wuwei City has decreased by nearly half compared to 2006, with significantly reduced mortality rates, allowing tens of thousands of early-stage cancer patients to return to healthy lives.

Platform and research support: The hospital possesses five national and provincial-level platforms, including the National Health Commission's Gastric Cancer Early Diagnosis and Treatment Base, Endoscopy Professional Training Base for Gastroenterology, and Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Gastrointestinal Diseases. It leads multiple research projects such as the National Key R&D Program and Gansu Provincial Key R&D Program. Achievements like the "Promotion and Application of Sequential Method for Gastric Cancer Screening" have brought tangible benefits to public health.

Looking ahead, the Gastroenterology Department of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital will continue to uphold the philosophy of "Preserving Tradition While Innovating," making sustained efforts in technology, talent development, and public welfare. Aiming to establish itself as a national key discipline, it will persistently scale new medical heights, attract more top-tier talents, and pioneer more cutting-edge technologies. The "Wuwei Model" will benefit broader regions, setting higher benchmarks for gastrointestinal disease prevention and treatment in western China and nationwide, becoming a robust bulwark for safeguarding public health. In the tide of the times, it will write more legendary medical chapters and steadily advance the Healthy China strategy.

• A key discipline in Gansu Province;

• First place in the National Endoscopy-Pathology Diagnosis and Treatment Technology Competition;

• Ranked first in Gansu for both the number of painless endoscopies performed and the painless endoscopy examination rate for eight consecutive years;

• Highest upper gastrointestinal cancer detection rate among all hospitals in Gansu;

• Highest ESD treatment volume in the province;

• Nationally leading equipment and diagnostic capabilities, having completed Gansu's first robot-assisted endoscopic transanal appendectomy without abdominal scarring and Gansu's first endoscopic ultrasound-guided biliary drainage (EUS-BD);

• A high-level professional team led by Chief Physician Zhang Zhiyi, a leading talent in Gansu's health system, founder of the Gastroenterology Department at Wuwei Cancer Hospital, and Director of the Endoscopy Center; Chief Physician Wu Zhengqi, the department's chief expert and discipline leader; and Chief Physician Lu Linzhi, Chairman of the Wuwei Digestive Diseases Professional Committee, among other senior experts;

• National Health Commission Gastric Cancer Early Diagnosis and Treatment Base, National Health Commission Endoscopy Professional Training Base for Gastroenterology, Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Gastrointestinal Diseases, Wuwei Branch of the Shanghai Molecular Medicine Center for Helicobacter pylori, and Wuwei Branch of the Xijing Biological Specimen Bank;

• Currently, the Gastroenterology Department is actively working to establish itself as a national key discipline and build a demonstration base for western China.