Saving lives and healing the sick has never been just an empty phrase—what moves us most is the steadfast commitment shown through concrete actions. Recently, Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital received a letter of gratitude. In it, a patient's family recounted the touching moments when the oncology department, radiology department, ultrasound room, endoscopy unit, and pathology department worked tirelessly in close coordination to quickly diagnose and promptly determine treatment for a late-stage cancer patient who had rapidly deteriorated shortly after his first visit. The family expressed heartfelt thanks for the medical staff's selfless dedication. 

01

A 60-year-old woman unexpectedly discovers 

Tumor the size of a duck egg 

Ms. Liu, 64, has always been attentive to her health and showed no abnormalities during a medical checkup four months ago. However, she recently began suffering from severe abdominal bloating. During an abdominal CT scan at the hospital accompanied by family members, two large tumors measuring approximately 7 centimeters each were discovered, along with fluid accumulation. 

Suddenly discovering a tumor the size of a duck egg left Ms. Liu and her family completely panicked. They then sought treatment at the Department of Oncology of Yantai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, drawn by its reputation. After admission, Dr. Tan Song, director of the First Oncology Department at Yantai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, led his team in immediately organizing a case discussion. Given that the tumor had developed from nothing within just four months and had already spread extensively, it indicated an extremely high degree of malignancy, requiring urgent identification of its origin. However, abdominal CT scans showed that the mass had invaded both the ovaries and intestinal walls, making it impossible to immediately determine or pinpoint the exact source—this undoubtedly added significant difficulty to diagnosis and treatment.

"This case presents many uncertainties and involves rapid disease progression, so timely and accurate diagnosis is crucial," explained Dr. Tan. "Ms. Liu has tumors in both ovaries and intestines, with lymph node metastasis already occurring in the abdominal cavity, indicating advanced-stage cancer. Immediate and precise treatment is therefore urgently needed." 

02

Internal and external coordination 

Race against time to find a lifeline 

"In the field of tumor diagnosis and treatment, the initial treatment plan directly affects the outcome of subsequent therapies, so there can be no room for negligence." To identify the cause as quickly as possible, Hou Aihua, Vice President of Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, immediately organized an in-hospital multidisciplinary team (MDT) consultation. Through coordinated efforts across multiple disciplines, they swiftly took action and completed necessary examinations, racing against time to save the elderly patient. 

The oncology department, ultrasound room, endoscopy suite, and pathology department worked in close coordination. On one hand, ultrasound was used to precisely locate the ascites, enabling percutaneous abdominal puncture and drainage. Ascitic fluid was collected for cytological examination. On the other hand, a thorough colonoscopy revealed proliferative lesions in the colon accompanied by partial obstruction. To clarify the diagnosis, an urgent pathological examination was performed, which indicated moderately to poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma of the colon. Meanwhile, the pathology results from the ascitic fluid strongly suggested metastasis from colorectal cancer. With both pathological findings corroborating each other and supported by immunohistochemical analysis, the diagnosis of Krukenberg tumor—a metastatic form of colonic malignancy—was quickly confirmed. 

To reduce waiting time, the oncology department assigned dedicated personnel to follow up on the progress of all examinations and initiated remote consultation appointments, inviting a top-tier team of domestic experts in cancer treatment for virtual consultations to ensure diagnostic accuracy. Building upon the strengths of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine, Hou Aihua collaborated with the expert team from the Oncology Specialty Medical Consortium (Pan-Central South Region Oncology Alliance) affiliated with Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center via the teleconsultation platform to jointly determine the treatment plan. The experts fully affirmed the initial diagnosis and treatment approach provided by Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital and offered guidance for subsequent therapy. As a result, Ms. Liu's follow-up treatment plan has been finalized, combining chemotherapy with traditional Chinese medicine, effectively relieving her long-standing abdominal distension. She has now successfully completed her first round of chemotherapy and has been discharged to return home. 03

Professional recognition 

Dedicated care that touches patients and their families 

"From admission to examination, pathological diagnosis, and treatment, the entire process achieved rapid diagnosis and therapy, demonstrating Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital's multidisciplinary comprehensive care capabilities." Ms. Liu's daughter, who witnessed the entire treatment process, expressed deep emotion and admiration for the hospital's dedicated care of her mother.

In her thank-you letter, Ms. Liu's daughter also mentioned a particular detail: on the very day the colonoscopy and ascites pathology results were released, Dr. Hou Aihua led Deputy Chief Physician Meng Peng from the Fourth Oncology Department back to the hospital to check the elderly patient’s mental and physical condition in person. They organized medical records and completed all necessary materials required by the Zhongshan University Cancer Hospital Tumor Specialty Medical Consortium (Pan-South China Tumor Specialty Alliance) consultation platform, laying a solid foundation for quickly determining the treatment plan. 

The oncology department of your hospital lives up to its reputation as a National Clinical Key Specialty, a National TCM Advantage Specialty, a key specialty under the Ministry of Health's 11th Five-Year Plan, and the leading specialty of the Qilu TCM Advantage Specialty Cluster. Not only does it possess strong professional capabilities, but it also collaborates with top-tier national oncology alliances, enabling cancer patients to access national-level medical resources right at their doorstep. Reflecting on the entire treatment process, Ms. Liu’s daughter expressed deep gratitude for choosing Yantai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which provided her mother with such high-quality and efficient care. 

"Patients' trust is our greatest motivation, and being able to safeguard their health with professionalism represents the highest value of a physician," said Hou Aihua. She added that based on Ms. Liu's genetic test results, they will support subsequent precision treatment plans. Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital will continue leveraging its strengths in integrated multidisciplinary care combining traditional Chinese and Western medicine to ensure patients' well-being. 

Science 

Room 

Introduction

Shao 

The Oncology Department of Yantai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine is a National Clinical Key Specialty, the Shandong Provincial Center for TCM Oncology Diagnosis and Treatment, and the lead specialty of the "Qilu TCM Advantageous Specialty Cluster in Oncology." It serves as a master's training site for Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Binzhou Medical College, with seven master's supervisors. The department currently hosts five studios dedicated to inheriting the expertise of National Masters of TCM and renowned provincial-level TCM physicians. It is also a standing council member of the China TCM Cancer Prevention and Control Alliance, and the host institution for the Shandong Geriatric Medicine Society’s Committee on TCM Oncology and the Shandong Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Professional Committee on Tumor Rehabilitation. A collaborative oncology treatment base has been established with Mexico (Yantai–Mexico Center for TCM Oncology).

The department excels in distinctive TCM approaches and has achieved remarkable results in the prevention and treatment of malignant tumors using traditional Chinese medicine, as well as in clinical research on TCM internal oncology. With advanced Western medical techniques, it widely applies minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic methods such as radioactive particle implantation, microwave ablation, and interventional therapy, capable of performing needle biopsies on tumors as small as 3 mm. To date, over 20 minimally invasive oncological procedures have been implemented. The department has summarized more than 30 core pathogenic mechanisms and standardized TCM prescriptions for tumors and their complications, developed five hospital-prepared formulations, refined over ten integrative TCM-Western medicine therapies, and formulated seven treatment protocols for cancers where TCM holds particular strengths, including lung cancer.

In recent years, the department has rapidly enhanced its comprehensive TCM service capabilities. It has made breakthrough progress in addressing major challenges in oncology—such as short survival times and poor quality of life among late-stage patients with common malignancies like lung, gastric, intestinal, and liver cancers—as well as in managing refractory complications including malignant pleural or peritoneal effusions, cancer pain, tumor fever, and cancer-related fatigue. Numerous late-stage cancer patients have achieved clinical remission, confirmed by imaging, endoscopic pathology, or post-surgical pathology, reaching complete remission. Moreover, many patients are living longer with tumors under control.