What this means for patients
This article describes one patient's care at a Shanghai cancer centre, including surgery and later treatment chosen after her cancer returned. It reports the hospital's own experience, not a formal study, so it does not show how well this approach works for other patients. Treatment decisions depend on each person's tumour features and previous therapy, and only a doctor can advise on suitable options.
“Professor Wu, thank you for giving me a second life! China’s ovarian cancer medical technology is truly too advanced!”
On July 22, in the clinic of Professor Wu Xiaohua (吴小华), chief multidisciplinary expert in gynecologic oncology at our hospital, Ms. MT from Pakistan tightly grasped his hand, her words full of gratitude. Within a week she completed the relevant examinations and received her treatment plan for the next stage.
One year earlier, a diagnosis of advanced ovarian cancer had plunged Ms. MT’s family into despair. Seeking a better treatment plan, Ms. MT learned through her family’s extensive research that the “Chinese protocol” for ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment at “Fudan Cancer” had given many patients a “second life.” So the family traveled thousands of miles from Pakistan to seek care at “Fudan Cancer.”
After Professor Wu Xiaohua’s team took over her case, they led a multidisciplinary team in discussing this difficult case, joining forces with hepatobiliary surgery, colorectal surgery, anesthesiology, nuclear medicine and other disciplines to successfully perform radical ovarian cancer surgery, precisely removing the tumor lesions in the abdominal cavity.
From seeking care in desperation to regaining a new life, Ms. MT’s cross-border medical journey not only gave her a “second life,” but also stands as vivid testimony to how “Fudan Cancer“‘s leading medical technology extends internationally to benefit patients worldwide.
A “transoceanic call for help” from a patient with advanced ovarian cancer
Time goes back to June 2025, when 60-year-old Ms. MT sought care at a local hospital in Pakistan for persistent abdominal distension, vomiting, and difficulty eating and passing stool. A series of test results plunged the whole family into an abyss of despair.
Ms. MT was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer. CT scans showed that the tumor in her body was like a “spreading vine,” not only tightly “wrapping around” the uterus, but also firmly “biting into” adjacent organs such as the intestines and bladder. The abdominal and pelvic cavities were covered with nodules of various sizes, accompanied by ascites, multiple metastases, and several abnormal lesions detected in the liver region. Further examination confirmed that the giant tumor in the mid-abdomen exceeded 10 centimeters and was tightly adherent to the intestines, like a welded part that was difficult to detach.
Local doctors developed a neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimen for Ms. MT, attempting to shrink the tumor and loosen adhesions. However, after three rounds of chemotherapy, the tumor remained “rampant,” with shrinkage falling short of expectations. Subsequent treatment thus reached a bottleneck, with little chance of surgery.
Clinging to a last thread of hope, Ms. MT and her family searched online platforms for clues to seek care worldwide. In their extensive search, they learned that “Fudan Cancer” has many innovative and original “Chinese protocols” in ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment, and they learned of many real cases in which the hospital’s team had successfully treated patients with advanced and complex ovarian cancer. This determined them to travel thousands of miles to Shanghai to seek a glimmer of hope for life.
A tailored, individualized “breakthrough plan”
After Ms. MT and her family arrived at the hospital, Professor Wu Xiaohua’s team immediately completed assessment examinations of her ovarian cancer status based on her prior condition and treatment, then submitted her medical records for multidisciplinary consultation, gathering experts from various fields to deliberate together.
“This patient’s condition is relatively complex. After prior neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the tumor in the pelvic cavity is still active, and its involvement spans multiple organs, making surgery difficult — like precisely clearing mines in an area full of traps, where we must completely remove the lesions while maximally protecting organ function,” Professor Wu Xiaohua said, pinpointing the core difficulty.
During the multidisciplinary discussion, Professor Xu Yajun (徐亚军) of Anesthesiology Department 1 carefully assessed the patient’s physical condition and determined that although she had anemia, a comprehensive judgment combining cardiopulmonary function and other indicators showed she could tolerate surgery; Professor Liu Shuai (刘帅) of the Department of Nuclear Medicine comprehensively evaluated the distribution of the patient’s tumor and its relationship with adjacent organs based on FAPI PET-CT findings, providing key evidence for precise intraoperative “mine clearing”; Professor Zheng Hongtu (郑洪途) of Colorectal Surgery Department 1 precisely assessed the extent of tumor invasion and the degree of intestinal involvement; Professor Zhang Ning (张宁) of the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery used imaging to precisely locate the liver lesions and define the resection margins, ensuring that liver function was preserved to the greatest extent while clearing the lesions.
After repeated deliberation and careful assessment, the multidisciplinary team ultimately developed an individualized treatment plan for Ms. MT — a team led by Professor Wu Xiaohua would perform radical ovarian cancer surgery, followed by chemotherapy based on the patient’s recovery, forming a closed loop of “radical surgery + adjuvant therapy.”
Professor Wu Xiaohua (left) seeing Ms. MT in the clinic
Radical resection of lesions safeguards “the dignity of life”
In September 2025, led by Professor Wu Xiaohua, Ms. MT’s surgery took place as scheduled.
The hospital’s anesthesia team, surgical nursing team, and gynecologic oncology and surgical MDT teams worked in close coordination to complete a multi-organ combined resection for ovarian cancer (modified radical hysterectomy + bilateral adnexectomy + omentectomy + splenectomy + partial diaphragmatic resection + segment VI hepatectomy + right hemicolectomy + rectosigmoidectomy + complex lysis of intestinal adhesions). “This is like disassembling a complex bomb inside a precision instrument, where every step requires extreme precision and tacit cooperation among the team,” said Professor Zheng Hongtu of Colorectal Surgery Department 1, who participated in the surgery.
After five hours of effort, the team successfully separated the tumor tissue tightly adherent to the intestines, liver and other organs, achieving R0 (no macroscopically visible residual disease) resection of a tumor weighing tens of jin. “R0 resection is the cornerstone for improving the 5-year survival rate of ovarian cancer patients. It is precisely because of the multidisciplinary team’s precise preoperative assessment and seamless intraoperative coordination that this successful surgery was solidly guaranteed,” Professor Wu Xiaohua emphasized.
What delighted the family even more was that while completely removing the lesions, the surgery preserved the patient’s organ function to the greatest extent, avoiding a stoma and other situations that could affect quality of life. “We consulted many experts abroad, all of whom believed this type of surgery carried extremely high risk. We never expected Chinese experts could achieve such a perfect result — your technology is truly admirable!” Ms. MT’s family exclaimed after surgery.
Skilled surgical technique and close intraoperative multidisciplinary coordination reduced intraoperative bleeding and surgical time, laying the foundation for the patient’s postoperative recovery, while the meticulous and careful work of the postoperative nursing team safeguarded the patient’s smooth recovery. “Considering that the patient and family members might face language barriers and difficulties cooperating with postoperative care, our team prepared bilingual Chinese-English nursing instructions and continuously refined the SOP process in practice. We have now developed a set of nursing routines suitable for internationalization. On the patient’s road to recovery, we too are learning and improving — sincerity and dedication can break down all communication barriers,” said Head Nurse Yao Lifeng (姚丽凤). The patient recovered smoothly and was discharged two weeks after surgery, then returned to Pakistan after completing one round of chemotherapy at our hospital.
Ms. MT undergoing surgery
“Fudan Cancer” technology wins international “likes”
In February this year, after completing three courses of chemotherapy following surgery, Ms. MT continued maintenance therapy with bevacizumab. For various reasons, she was temporarily unable to come to Shanghai for follow-up, so Professor Wu Xiaohua’s team arranged a teleconsultation for her. The follow-up results showed that her tumor markers were within the normal range, and imaging indicated she was in a tumor-free survival state. Based on this result, the team assessed: “The patient’s physical condition is fully adequate for daily life. Although she is currently tumor-free, she is BRCA1/2 wild-type, HRD-negative, and had a large initial tumor burden with no obvious tumor shrinkage during neoadjuvant chemotherapy. She still needs to continue maintenance therapy to further consolidate efficacy and reduce the risk of recurrence.”
“Our whole family cannot express our gratitude in words — it is Chinese doctors who lit the hope of life for my mother.” Ms. MT’s family specially sent a thank-you letter after surgery, praising Professor Wu Xiaohua’s team for “creating a medical miracle with top-level surgical expertise, precise operative skill and wholehearted dedication.” The letter also specifically expressed thanks to the hospital’s anesthesiology department, nursing team and all supporting staff, saying their professionalism and humanistic care brought warmth and comfort to the whole family.
Photo with Ms. MT and her family
“Precision diagnosis and treatment” brings new hope to patients
In late July this year, Ms. MT flew to Shanghai again accompanied by her family. Previously, a follow-up test in Pakistan had shown a slight rise in her CA125 level, but CT detected no obvious lesions. On this trip, she returned specially to Fudan Cancer for a comprehensive re-examination, hoping to clarify her condition and formulate the next treatment strategy.
“Coming to Fudan Cancer, our whole family feels reassured. A year ago, Director Wu lit the hope for my mother; this time, we look forward to using China’s advanced testing methods and treatment plans to point the way for us. We have learned that Fudan Cancer has many innovative, original Chinese protocols in ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment, and this time we also want to see whether there are innovative maintenance drugs and follow-up targeted drugs suitable for my mother,” Ms. MT and her family said in the clinic, tightly holding Professor Wu Xiaohua’s hand, their words full of gratitude.
Given that the patient had previously shown low sensitivity on CA125 and local facilities lacked HE4 monitoring, Professor Wu Xiaohua arranged for her to complete testing of CA125/HE4 and other tumor markers, and again arranged a FAPI PET/CT examination.
“The results were worrying: CA125 had only risen slightly, but HE4 had risen significantly to above 300; FAPI PET/CT indicated lymph node recurrence and miliary lesions — the tumor had once again made a comeback,” Professor Wu Xiaohua noted. Although the patient was still in a platinum-sensitive recurrence state, prior platinum-containing chemotherapy had only slightly shrunk the tumor, so the prospect of response to platinum-based chemotherapy again was not optimistic. Fortunately, in recent years gynecologic oncology ADC drugs have developed rapidly, moving from targeted exploration into the era of precision treatment. Our hospital’s gynecologic oncology department has led multiple ADC drug clinical trials, covering mirvetuximab soravtansine targeting folate receptor alpha (FRα), and novel ADCs targeting HER2 and Trop-2. The patient currently shows high folate receptor expression and HER2-negative status, and after full communication with the family, mirvetuximab soravtansine was chosen for her next treatment.
“We are very happy to receive such targeted therapy in China, and we plan to return to Shanghai regularly for efficacy evaluation.” At present, Ms. MT has completed her first course of treatment and plans to return to Pakistan.
“We hope to use the whole-course ovarian cancer management concept of ‘surgery-chemotherapy-maintenance therapy-targeted therapy’ to help more advanced-stage patients like Ms. MT, and let ‘Fudan experience’ contribute to the global cause of cancer prevention and treatment,” Professor Wu Xiaohua said.
It is reported that our hospital is one of the medical institutions treating the largest number of ovarian cancer patients in the country. In 2025, the hospital’s ovarian cancer surgical volume reached more than 2,285 cases, accounting for over 40 percent of the total volume of such surgeries in Shanghai. Relying on this vast case resource, Professor Wu Xiaohua’s team established an entirely new ovarian cancer surgical management model, greatly raising the macroscopic complete resection rate (R0 resection rate) for primary ovarian cancer from 31 percent to 77.8 percent, significantly improving patients’ quality of survival, with the 5-year survival rate now exceeding 50 percent.
“Even for intermediate and advanced ovarian cancer, we can, through precise assessment, develop individualized diagnosis and treatment plans and increase the probability of R0 surgical resection. As tumor diagnosis and treatment enter the precision era, the orderly conduct of multiple clinical studies has injected new opportunities into the whole-course management of patients and brought longer survival hope,” Professor Wu Xiaohua said.
It is precisely on the basis of such accumulation and exploration that multiple domestic and international clinical trials led by our hospital’s gynecologic oncology department have earned domestic innovative drugs attention on the international stage, and have also attracted many overseas patients to travel great distances for treatment. Professor Wu Xiaohua said: “This trust across borders is the best affirmation of us, and even more a spur to keep breaking through.”
Original report: Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center. This article is an English translation of the original report.