Oncology Department (Radiotherapy Room)

The Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University was formerly the Department of Radiotherapy. Established in 1964, it was the earliest institution in Southwest China to carry out radiotherapy for tumors. After comprehensive medical oncology treatment was initiated in 1990, the Department of Radiotherapy was renamed the Department of Oncology. It mainly undertakes radiotherapy, chemotherapy, biological targeted therapy, immunotherapy, interventional therapy, and other treatments for various malignant tumors, including nasopharyngeal carcinoma, cervical cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, esophageal cancer, lymphoma, and brain tumors. The department is fully equipped and has strong technical capabilities; it has achieved remarkable results in the comprehensive and standardized treatment of malignant tumors, with treatment outcomes reaching a leading level in China. The Department of Oncology currently has seven subspecialties, each headed by senior experts, and regularly holds weekly MDT discussions of difficult cases to formulate optimal diagnosis and treatment plans. The gastrointestinal tumor subspecialty is supported by the colorectal cancer MDT team, a strong radiotherapy platform, and a unique disease-specific database. It emphasizes combining the principles of “standardization” and “individualization,” and routinely carries out chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and other treatments for gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, and other tumor types. It is mainly dedicated to exploring “sphincter-preserving” treatment for locally advanced low rectal cancer and comprehensive treatment for difficult recurrent and metastatic colorectal cancer. The colorectal cancer multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment (MDT) team was also one of the earliest established and most mature teams in western China. During its 12 years of operation, it has provided high-quality medical services to more than 4000 difficult-case patients. The team has successively been recognized as a “National Health Commission Pilot Hospital for Multidisciplinary Diagnosis and Treatment of Tumors (Digestive System)” and a “Multidisciplinary Diagnosis and Treatment Center for Digestive System Tumors of the China Oncology MDT Alliance.” It is currently undertaking and has completed more than 10 domestic and international clinical trials of new drugs and new therapies, enabling patients to access the latest antitumor treatments in China and abroad. The breast cancer subspecialty relies on the Chongqing Breast Cancer Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment Center and aims to capitalize on its advantages in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment technology so that more breast cancer patients can receive more standardized diagnosis and treatment. Our hospital diagnoses and treats more than 1500 breast cancer patients each year; the number of patients who have undergone breast-conserving surgery involving oncoplastic surgery and breast reconstruction has exceeded 1500, and the number of radiotherapy patients has exceeded 800. With the support of the hospital’s strong platform, the breast cancer subspecialty has established a first-class multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment team in western China, including experts from breast and thyroid surgery, medical oncology, radiology, ultrasonography, pathology, and other departments, to provide consultation support for difficult cases. At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, it also began developing an online MDT consultation platform for breast cancer, bringing tangible improvements in diagnosis and treatment standards and services to member institutions of the Western Breast and Thyroid Specialty Alliance and to the many patients in western China. Over the past nearly 15 years, our hospital’s breast cancer center has successively served as the presiding institution for the Breast Cancer Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, the Breast Cancer Committee of the Chongqing Anti-Cancer Association, and the Oncology Chemotherapy Committee of the Chongqing Anti-Cancer Association. It has collaborated with many overseas medical and research institutions, particularly through extensive and in-depth cooperation and exchanges with France, and has successfully held 10 China-France International Advanced Academic Forums on Breast Cancer. It has led or participated in dozens of international and domestic multicenter clinical trials on breast cancer, benefiting patients. The head and neck tumor subspecialty mainly carries out comprehensive treatment, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy, for malignant tumors of the nasopharynx, nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, larynx, oropharynx, hypopharynx, oral cavity, and other sites. The team includes experts from our department, the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, the Department of Imaging, the Department of Pathology, the Department of Nutrition, and other departments. Our hospital’s head and neck tumor multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment (MDT) program has been operating for 10 years. Team members have extensive clinical experience in this field and have provided individualized treatment plans for more than 3500 patients, benefiting people across the three southwestern provinces and even the coastal areas. It has held provincial- and municipal-level head and neck tumor forums and standardized diagnosis and treatment training sessions 9 times. In December 2017, it was approved as the Head and Neck Tumor Standardized Diagnosis and Treatment Training Base of the Head and Neck Tumor Professional Committee of the China Association of Medical Education. Our department is a nationally designated clinical trial base for new antitumor drugs and has participated in 17 international and domestic multicenter clinical trials on head and neck tumors. The gynecologic oncology subspecialty is dedicated to the clinical, research, and teaching work related to various gynecologic malignancies, including ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, and endometrial cancer. It carries out comprehensive treatment, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy, as well as international and domestic multicenter clinical trials and investigator-initiated clinical research. This subspecialty is a Level IV gynecologic endoscopic surgery training base of the National Health Commission, the chairing institution of the Southwest Gynecologic Oncology and Difficult Diseases Specialty Alliance, and the Gynecologic Laparoscopy Training Base of the Chinese Medical Association National County-Level Talent Training Program. Relying on the da Vinci surgical platform, precision external-beam radiotherapy, and a three-dimensional afterloading radiotherapy system, this subspecialty provides high-quality comprehensive treatment services for patients with locally advanced and recurrent or metastatic gynecologic tumors. Through the establishment of a gynecologic oncology multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment (MDT) program, it has cumulatively diagnosed and treated more than 3000 patients, with an average of more than 500 radiotherapy patient-visits annually, effectively improving the survival outcomes of patients with gynecologic tumors. The prostate cancer subspecialty mainly includes surgical treatment, endocrine therapy, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and isotope therapy. Our hospital has operated a prostate cancer multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment (MDT) program for nearly 10 years. The team includes experts from our department, the Department of Urology, the Department of Imaging, the Department of Nuclear Medicine, the Department of Pathology, and other departments. It has exchanged experience with prostate cancer MDT teams throughout China and emphasizes individualized treatment and long-term patient management. The subspecialty formulates individualized treatment plans according to factors such as the patient’s age, condition, and physical status, closely monitors changes in the patient’s condition, and adjusts the treatment plan in a timely manner. It also provides patients with rehabilitation guidance and psychological support to help them better cope with the physical and psychological stress caused by the disease. The lung cancer subspecialty focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. Treatment methods include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and other approaches, and a systematic and comprehensive set of lung cancer diagnosis and treatment standards has been established. Our department jointly conducts a multidisciplinary comprehensive diagnosis and treatment model (MDT) with our hospital’s Department of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Imaging, Department of Pathology, and other departments, providing patients with first-class lung cancer diagnosis and treatment services in China. Precise treatment is available for pulmonary nodules, early-stage lung cancer, and mid- to late-stage lung cancer. For patients who cannot undergo surgery, noninvasive treatments such as SBRT (stereotactic body radiotherapy), bronchial afterloading radiotherapy, and radiofrequency ablation are routinely performed, bringing hope to more patients with lung cancer. The hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumor subspecialty has long been dedicated to the standardized diagnosis and treatment of malignant tumors of the liver, biliary tract, and pancreas. It actively conducts basic and clinical translational research on hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumors and has developed a treatment system centered on surgery and focused on comprehensive treatment modalities, including chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, endocrine therapy, and radiotherapy. In 2019, it was approved by the National Health Commission as a “Development Base for the Standardized Diagnosis and Treatment Training Program for Primary Liver Cancer.” The multidisciplinary comprehensive diagnosis and treatment model (MDT) team, formed by the Departments of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Oncology, Imaging, Pathology, Nutrition, and other disciplines, achieved rankings at both the Third and Fourth National Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery Summit Forums and the National Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Tumor MDT Exchange Meeting. It is a medical institution that took the lead in carrying out hepatobiliary and pancreatic MDT in Southwest China. After 60 years of unremitting effort and development, the achievements of the Department of Oncology have received high recognition from all sectors: in 2012, it received the Ministry of Health’s “Model Ward for Standardized Cancer Pain Treatment” designation (the only department in Chongqing to receive this designation) and became a National Ministry of Health Training Base for High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Tumor Treatment; in 2013, it received the National Ministry of Health’s Clinical Key Specialty Construction Project in Oncology (the only department in Chongqing to receive this designation); in 2014, it received designation from the National Food and Drug Administration as an antitumor drug clinical trial base; in 2014, it was designated a National Clinical Key Specialty; in 2015, it became a standardized residency training base for oncology radiotherapy; in 2016, it was designated by the Chongqing Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission as a Clinical Medical Research Center in Oncology; in 2017, it became a research base for the project on solutions for a new radiotherapy service model; in 2022, it was named one of the top ten exemplary units of the Telemedicine Collaboration Network; in 2023, it received designation as an Oncology Multidisciplinary Diagnosis and Treatment (MDT) Center. The department currently has 138 staff members, including 35 physicians; 9 physicists; 1 engineer; 21 technicians; and 62 nursing staff. Professional title structure: 5 with senior professional titles, 14 with associate senior professional titles, and 38 with intermediate professional titles. Educational structure: 26 people hold doctoral degrees and 14 hold master’s degrees. At present, 10 people have been appointed as master’s supervisors. Sixteen people have undertaken further training in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, and other countries, and 26 people have undertaken further training at well-known domestic oncology hospitals. The oncology wards currently have four units with a total of 203 beds: 136 at the main campus (112 inpatient beds, 8 outpatient chemotherapy beds, and 16 infusion chairs) and 67 at Jinshan (45 in the oncology group and 22 in the thoracic surgery group). Inpatient care, outpatient chemotherapy, and radiotherapy are provided. The department has 5 of the world’s most advanced medical linear accelerators, 1 MR simulation and positioning machine, 1 large-bore CT simulation and positioning machine, 1 three-dimensional afterloading treatment machine, 10 sets of Eclipse and Raystation three-dimensional treatment planning systems, 1 three-dimensional water phantom, 3 sets in total of Compass, Dolphin, and Delta 4 three-dimensional plan-verification equipment, 2 two-dimensional matrices, 1 simulation phantom, and a complete range of supporting quality-control equipment, including dosimeters, a morning-check instrument, solid water, ionization chambers, and dose analyzers. It routinely performs stereotactic radiotherapy (SRS, SRT, SBRT, SABR), image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), volumetric rotational intensity-modulated radiotherapy (VAMT), intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT), brachytherapy, and other treatments. “Being patient-centered and continuously improving the quality of medical services” is the Department of Oncology’s unwavering pursuit!