Introduction to the Department of Surgery

Revised Final Version, March 20, 2026

The Department of Surgery traces its origins back to the surgical division of the Affiliated Hospital of National Central University founded in 1935. It has evolved through successive institutional phases of National Central University, Nanjing Railway Medical College, and Southeast University. Distinguished Chinese surgical experts including Huang Maokui, Leng Yongcheng, Shi Huanyao, Zhou Xingming, Zhou Yupian, Wu Dingxin, Chen Huairen, Fan Jia and others once undertook teaching or clinical appointments here. Professors Huang Maokui, Leng Yongcheng, Tang Wenhao, Liu Zhiyong and other surgical authorities previously served as directors of the Surgery Teaching and Research Section or the Department of Surgery.

The Surgery Discipline of Southeast University boasts an illustrious heritage. In the 1950s, Professor Huang Maokui devised a burn fluid resuscitation formula, which has been incorporated into national Textbook of Surgery. In the 1970s, Professor Zhou Xingming pioneered renal transplantation, earning the National Science Conference Award in 1978. Also in the 1970s, Professors Huang Maokui and Chen Huairen performed Jiangsu Province’s first orthotopic liver transplantation, etching a milestone in China’s organ transplantation history. In the 1980s, Professor Leng Yongcheng developed microtia reconstruction plastic surgery, establishing an unparalleled domestic standing in this field; Professor Zhou Yupian carried out open intracardiac operations, attaining a leading position within Jiangsu Province. Since the 1990s, technologies including extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy research, minimally invasive surgery for intervertebral disc disorders, off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting, and robotic surgical procedures have maintained provincial leadership.

Department Leadership

Department Chair: Professor Zhou Jiahua

Professor Zhou Jiahua is a chief physician, doctoral supervisor, postdoctoral co-supervisor, and Director of General Surgery at Zhongda Hospital, Southeast University. He completed postdoctoral training at Massachusetts General Hospital (Harvard University) and the Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital of Naval Medical University, and is a Jiangsu Provincial Leading Medical Talent. His research centers on clinical and translational research in hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery, with systematic studies on the initiation and progression of pancreatic cancer, mechanisms underlying hepatocellular carcinoma progression and metastasis, tumor immune microenvironment, and circulating tumor cell detection. He possesses solid foundations in medical-engineering cross-disciplinary research and clinical translation. In recent years, he has presided over or led two General Programs of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and one Key Research and Development Program of Jiangsu Province, and participated as a sub-project principal investigator in a National Major Scientific Research Instrument Development Project. Over the past five years, he has published more than 20 SCI papers as corresponding or co-author in journals including Cell Death & Disease and BBA Reviews on Cancer, yielding a series of research achievements covering liver cancer risk assessment, pancreatic cancer microenvironment regulation, and tumor detection technologies. He performs complex hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgeries, holds authorized national invention patents, and has received the First and Third Class Prizes of the Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Award. His academic social appointments include: Member of the Liver Surgery Group, Surgery Branch of the Chinese Medical Association; Vice Chairman of the Pancreatic Disease Branch, Jiangsu Medical Association; Standing Committee Member and Deputy Group Leader of the Liver Surgery Group, Surgery Branch of Jiangsu Medical Association; Founding Chairman (1st & 2nd Sessions), Biliary Tumor Special Committee, Jiangsu Anti-Cancer Association; Vice Chairman of the Minimally/Non-Invasive Surgery Branch, Jiangsu Medical Doctors Association; Group Leader of the Biliary Surgery Group, Surgery Branch of Jiangsu Medical Doctors Association; Standing Committee Member (3rd & 4th Sessions), Biliary Tumor Special Committee, Chinese Anti-Cancer Association; Standing Committee Member, Minimally Invasive Surgery Special Committee, Chinese Research Hospital Association.

Deputy Department Chairs: Professor Rui Yunfeng, Associate Professor Chen Shuqiu, Deputy Chief Physician Yu Zeqian

Professor Rui Yunfeng

Professor Rui Yunfeng is a chief physician, doctoral supervisor, postdoctoral co-supervisor, Director of the Trauma Treatment Center, Deputy Director of the Department of Orthopedics, and Deputy Director of the Southeast University Institute of Trauma Orthopedics. He holds key academic positions including Director of the Geriatric Orthopedics Branch, Jiangsu Geriatric Medicine Society; Vice Chairman of the Trauma Medicine Branch and the Osteoporosis & Bone Mineral Disease Branch, Jiangsu Medical Association; Director of the 3rd Council, Jiangsu Medical Doctors Association. He is selected as a Key Medical Talent under the Jiangsu Provincial "Strengthening Healthcare through Science and Education" Program and a high-level talent trainee of the Jiangsu "333 Project". He serves as an expert for the Core Library of Biomaterials under the Ministry of Science and Technology, reviewer for the Degree and Graduate Education Development Center of the Ministry of Education, talent evaluation expert for the National Health Commission, reviewer for the China Association for Science and Technology, talent program reviewer for the Personnel Department of the Ministry of Education, and project reviewer for the National Natural Science Foundation of China. He acts as Editorial Board Member of Chinese Journal of Trauma, Executive Editorial Board Member of Chinese Journal of Reparative and Reconstructive Surgery, and International Editorial Board Member of Journal of Orthopaedic Translation. He translated Geriatric Orthopedics and Comprehensive Management of Geriatric Trauma Patients, and edited Essential Surgical Cases in Trauma Orthopedics. He has published over 90 SCI papers as first or corresponding author in top international journals such as Nano-Micro Letters, Ageing Research Reviews, and ACS Nano. He is listed among the World’s Top 2% Scientists (Clinical Medicine – Orthopedics) and ranks in the Top 5% Highly Cited Scholars on CNKI.

Professor Chen Ming, Director of the Surgical Experimental Center

Professor Chen Ming is a Grade-II Professor, chief physician, doctoral supervisor, and Harvard postdoctoral fellow. He is the academic leader of a National Key Clinical Specialty Construction Unit. His professional titles include Vice President of the World Chinese Urological Physicians Association; Vice Chairman of Jiangsu Medical Doctors Association; Deputy Director of the Prostate Cancer Quality Control Expert Committee, National Cancer Center National Tumor Quality Control Center; Standing Committee Member of the Urologist Branch, Chinese Medical Doctor Association; Committee Member of the Urology Branch, Chinese Medical Association; Secretary-General of the Minimally Invasive Surgery Group, Urology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association; Chairman of the Urology Branch, Jiangsu Medical Doctors Association; Chairman of the Medical Robotics Branch, Jiangsu Medical Association. He sits on the editorial boards of journals including Chinese Journal of Urology, Chinese Journal of Endourology (Electronic Edition), National Journal of Andrology, and Journal of Clinical Urology. He is a leader of the Medical Innovation Team under the Jiangsu "Strengthening Healthcare through Science and Education" Program and a talent of the Jiangsu "Six Major Talent Peaks" Program, as well as a Visiting Professor at the University of Texas Medical School and MD Anderson Cancer Center. His major honors include the inaugural Jiangsu Medical Doctor Award (2017), the Trustworthy Medical Expert for consecutive years, the Wu Jieping Urology Medical Award (2019), the Golden Cystoscope Award from the Urology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association (2020), Advanced Individual of Outstanding Professional Committee Members (2019–2020, Nanjing Hospital Association), Top Ten Doctors of Nanjing (7th Session), and the Lifetime Achievement Award of the World Chinese Urological Association (2022).

Institutional Setup & Disciplinary Ranking

The Department of Surgery comprises six specialized teaching and research sections (General Surgery, Urology, Plastic & Burn Surgery, Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Cardiothoracic Surgery) alongside the Surgical Experimental Center.

·General Surgery and Urology are National Key Clinical Specialty Construction Units;

·Plastic & Burn Surgery is a Jiangsu Provincial Key Medical Discipline;

·General Surgery, Urology, Plastic & Burn Surgery, Orthopedics, Neurosurgery and Thoracic Surgery are Jiangsu Provincial Key Clinical Specialties;

·Cardiac Surgery is a Jiangsu Provincial Key Clinical Specialty Construction Unit. Surgery is designated as a Phase II Construction Discipline under Southeast University’s 985 Project.

Graduate Education

Surgery offers Doctoral and Master’s degree programs in both academic science and clinical medicine. It was among China’s first batch of authorized Master’s degree conferral units in 1982. The department recruits 70–80 Master’s students and over 20 Doctoral candidates annually. Long-term stable scientific, educational and clinical collaborations have been established with renowned overseas medical schools, enabling joint training of 2–3 doctoral students abroad each year.

Faculty Team

The department employs 25 professors/chief physicians and 38 associate professors/deputy chief physicians, including 15 doctoral supervisors and 32 master’s supervisors. Multiple faculty members are selected for talent training initiatives: Jiangsu "333 Project", Jiangsu "135 Project" Key Medical Talents, Academic Leaders under the Blue Project, and Key Medical Talents of the Jiangsu "Revitalizing Healthcare through Science and Education" Program.

Teaching Responsibilities & Achievements

The department delivers teaching for doctoral students, master’s students, 8-year clinical medicine undergraduates (70% of instructors adopt bilingual teaching), 5-year clinical medicine undergraduates, as well as undergraduates majoring in Preventive Medicine, Medical Laboratory Science, Medical Imaging, Biomedical Engineering, and Labor Health & Occupational Medicine. It additionally undertakes English-taught courses for international students enrolled at the university. Annual total teaching workload exceeds 60,000 student-hours.

Committed to teaching reform, the department adopts modern teaching tools to continuously upgrade teaching quality. Several courses have been recognized as Jiangsu Provincial Excellent Courses, earning widespread praise from students. Numerous faculty have received prestigious awards including the Outstanding Scientific Research Achievement Award for Institutions of Higher Education, Southeast University Teaching Award, Southeast University Teaching Achievement Award, and Southeast University President’s Award. Multiple teaching reform projects have been secured, such as Jiangsu Provincial Graduate Education Teaching Reform Research & Practice Projects, Jiangsu Provincial Higher Education Teaching Reform Research Projects, Jiangsu Provincial General University Graduate Research Innovation Programs, and research topics under the 11th Five-Year Plan of Jiangsu Provincial Education Science.

Scientific Research Strength & Featured Research Directions

Over the past five years, the department has presided over or participated in 1 National Key Research and Development Program, 23 National Natural Science Foundation Projects, and 8 Jiangsu Provincial Natural Science Foundation Projects. Faculty have published more than 500 papers, including 188 SCI-indexed articles, authored or edited 10 textbooks and monographs, and participated in formulating over 20 clinical guidelines and expert consensus statements. Research awards include the First Class Prize of Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award, Chinese Medical Science and Technology Award, Second Class Outstanding Achievement Award of the Ministry of Education, Jiangsu Provincial Medical Science and Technology Award, and over 10 Jiangsu Provincial Health Commission Medical New Technology Introduction Awards.

Centered on the core concepts of "precision diagnosis and treatment" and "minimally invasive surgery", the department addresses fundamental frontline challenges in surgical basic and clinical research, with a focus on pathogenic mechanisms of malignant surgical tumors and the development of precision and minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment strategies. Long-term international research and education partnerships have been forged with leading overseas medical institutions. Seven distinctive research strengths have been established:

1. Clinical and basic research on urological tumors

2. Degenerative mechanisms of joints and intervertebral discs

3. Basic and clinical research on hepatobiliary, pancreatic and gastrointestinal malignancies

4. Fundamental research on organ transplantation

5. Research on craniofacial malformations and tissue defects

6. Basic and translational research on stem cells, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

7. Pathological mechanisms of tendinopathy