Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK Sloan), and Chinese Thoracic Oncology Group (CTONG) jointly hosted the inaugural Cure4Cancer (C4C) Annual Conference and the MSK-CTONG 6th Annual Symposium on December 1st at the Asia Society headquarters in New York City. Over 200 participants, including cancer experts, global public health leaders, founders and CEOs of major biotechnology companies, presidents and CEOs of top hospitals, patient advocacy organizations, and cancer survivors, gathered to discuss how to promote global health equity and coordination and drive international collaboration.

Prof. Wu Yilong, Chairman of CTONG and the Cure4Cancer Conference, pointed out that since its establishment, CTONG has been working towards the goal of reducing the burden of cancer, promoting lung cancer diagnosis and treatment, advancing domestic and international collaboration in clinical trials, facilitating access to lung cancer diagnosis and treatment for grassroots populations, and utilizing media influence for health education to promote global health equity. He emphasized the importance of global cooperation in the field of cancer, stating that while an individual may progress quickly, it is through collective efforts that we can achieve long-lasting impact.

The conference consisted of two main parts: the Policy Focus Group Symposium and the Scientific Focus Group Symposium. Prof. Wu Yilong led a delegation of twelve medical professionals from mainland China, including a team from the Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, to participate in the afternoon Scientific Focus Group Symposium. They engaged in in-depth discussions on several topics within panel I-V.

Prof. Zhou Qing, Secretary-General of CTONG and President of the Cancer Hospital of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Prof. Tu Haiyan, Chief Physician of the Department of Pulmonology at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Prof. Xu Chongrui, Chief Physician of the Second Department of Pulmonology, Prof. Yan Lixu, Chief Physician of the Department of Pathology, and Dr. Liu Siyang, Attending Physician of the Department of Thoracic Surgery, engaged in in-depth exchanges and discussions with globally renowned experts on multiple topics.

Dr. Liu Siyang, an outstanding graduate of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital and an advocate for patient-centered clinical trials, and Dr. Zhang Jiatao, an outstanding young researcher in the field of thoracic surgery and early to mid-stage liquid biopsies at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, delivered keynote speeches.

Prof. Yang Fan, Vice President of Peking University People's Hospital, a core member institution of CTONG, served as the moderator for the group discussions. Prof. Wang Buhai, Chief of the Cancer Center of Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital, and Prof. Liu Anwen, Chief of the Cancer Center of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, participated as guest speakers to engage in in-depth exchanges with scholars from around the world.

The Cure4Cancer Conference has already had a sustained global impact. On the same afternoon as the conference, the NORTH Foundation announced a $20 million donation from philanthropists Kay Van Norton Poche and Gregory Poche. The donation is intended to help establish a cancer clinical trial research center at the Royal North Shore Hospital and the North Shore Private Hospital in Sydney. This center will collaborate with Cure4Cancer and MSK Sloan for joint development. Following the conference, an article published in Forbes pointed out that this donation is just one of the many global impacts and successes achieved at the inaugural Cure4Cancer conference. Under the leadership of Professor Wu Yilong, the Chinese delegation will continue to support the MSK Sloan/CTONG and work hand in hand with counterparts worldwide to continue promoting global health equity, driving the continuous development of cancer diagnosis and treatment in China, and achieving the "Cure4Cancer" goal at an early date.

Guangdong Lung Cancer Institute

Updated: December 27, 2023