New Milestone Hospital Group Plans to Establish 10–15 Radiotherapy Centers Nationwide Within Three Years

“Radiotherapy has evolved through four stages: from conventional radiotherapy in the 1980s, to precision radiotherapy in the 1990s, to personalized radiotherapy in the 2010s, and now to intelligent radiotherapy. Intelligent radiotherapy is an integrated, automated treatment approach based on big data and artificial intelligence.” On July 12, at the Symposium on New Technologies for Precision Radiotherapy in Oncology (hereinafter referred to as the “Symposium”) held in Zoucheng City, Shandong Province, Yu Jinming, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, outlined the developmental trajectory of the radiotherapy specialty. Academician Yu, who serves as President of Shandong Cancer Hospital, was appointed as Chief Advisor to the Oncology Center of Yankuang New Journey General Hospital during the symposium.

△Lin Yanglin, CEO of New Journey Hospital Group, presents Academician Yu Jinming with the appointment letter as “Chief Advisor to the Oncology Center of Yankuang New Journey General Hospital”

At the exchange meeting, Lin Yanglin, CEO of New Milestone Hospital Group, stated that the Radiation Oncology Center at Yankuang New Milestone General Hospital is the second such center established by the group. Over the next three years, New Milestone Hospital Group plans to establish 10–15 radiation oncology centers across China.

The commissioning ceremony and exchange meeting for the Halcyon Smart Radiotherapy Platform at Yankuang New Milestone General Hospital were held concurrently. Halcyon is the world’s first medical linear accelerator to achieve 100% image guidance. As the most advanced smart radiotherapy platform globally, it is renowned for its high precision and intelligence, with each unit priced at tens of millions of yuan.

△The Second Halcyon Smart Radiotherapy Platform in China Officially Starts Operation at Yankuang New Journey General Hospital

In November 2018, Halcyon received approval for entry into China, with the first unit installed at Peking Union Medical College Hospital and the second at Yankuang New Journey General Hospital.

“Today’s smart radiotherapy focuses on intelligent IGRT (Image-Guided Radiation Therapy), which uses artificial intelligence to adjust beam angles in response to changes in organ position, allowing the radiation beams to closely ‘track’ the target area. This approach minimizes radiation damage to healthy tissues while ensuring precise irradiation of the target,” said Zhao Dong, Vice President of Varian Medical Systems for Greater China. He noted that Halcyon, developed and manufactured by Varian, employs devices such as multileaf collimators to reduce the leakage rate from 0.5%–1% in conventional radiotherapy equipment to just 0.01%, significantly enhancing the precision of radiation therapy and bringing substantial benefits to a wide range of cancer patients.

With the introduction of expert resources and the acquisition of new equipment, the Cancer Center of Yankuang New Journey General Hospital is poised for a new beginning. Zhang Chuanjun, President of Yankuang New Journey General Hospital, stated, “Our investment goes beyond merely purchasing expensive medical devices. In terms of cancer treatment, we will strengthen multidisciplinary team (MDT) consultations. Regarding talent development, we are adopting a two-pronged approach: inviting renowned experts, including academicians, to join us while sending our physicians abroad for advanced training and fellowships. Our goal is to build a local team of oncology specialists in Zoucheng City.”

In April 2018, New Milestone Hospital Group acquired a controlling stake in Yankuang New Milestone General Hospital. Subsequently, the two parties jointly established five working groups focused on campus restructuring, talent recruitment, performance reform, informatization enhancement, and supply chain optimization, thereby implementing systemic reforms at the hospital.

“At the beginning of this year, the hospital passed the re-accreditation review for a Grade III Class A hospital. Our next focus will be on the continuous development of our clinical disciplines,” said Lin Yanglin, CEO of New Journey Hospital Group. In 2019, Yankuang New Journey General Hospital will prioritize the establishment of major specialized centers, including an Oncology Center, Heart Center, High-End Women’s and Children’s Center, and Stroke Center. Currently, the hospital is in negotiations with the Beijing Ivy League Medical Elite Talent Alliance to jointly establish the Heart Center, aiming to provide top-tier cardiac care services to patients in Zoucheng City and even the broader southwestern Shandong region in the future.

Lin Yanglin stated that the establishment of a series of discipline-specific centers is an essential step in transforming Yankuang New Journey General Hospital into a first-class Grade A tertiary hospital in southwestern Shandong Province.

The Radiotherapy Center of Yankuang New Journey General Hospital is the second radiotherapy center established by New Journey Hospital Group. In September 2018, New Journey Hospital Group invested tens of millions of yuan in purchasing radiotherapy equipment and upgraded the Department of Radiotherapy at its affiliated Luoyang Dongfang Hospital into the Luoyang Regional Radiotherapy Center.

New Milestone Hospital Group also participated in the construction of the Lanzhou Heavy Ion Project, hailed as a “national cornerstone.” On July 4, 2019, New Milestone Hospital Group entered into a strategic investment and cooperation agreement with Lanzhou Heavy Ion Co., Ltd. The two parties will leverage equity cooperation as a binding link to jointly develop Lanzhou Heavy Ion Hospital into a first-class domestic and internationally leading heavy-ion specialized oncology hospital, as well as a regional medical center that provides comprehensive treatment and routine care for common diseases.

New Milestone Hospital Group has begun to lay out a national radiotherapy network platform. "In addition to providing financial support, we will also offer advanced technical support, high-quality expert resources, and scarce strategic cooperation opportunities," said Lin Yanglin. The plan is to establish 10-15 large-scale radiotherapy centers within three years through three models: investing in and operating radiotherapy centers in hospitals under the group, investing in hospitals and transforming them into hospitals with radiotherapy specialties, and managing and operating radiotherapy centers in other hospitals.

Radiotherapy is a critical component of cancer treatment, yet it is often underestimated. Academician Yu Jinming pointed out, “55% of malignant tumors are curable; among these, surgery accounts for 49% of cures, radiotherapy for 40%, and chemotherapy for 11%. Approximately 70% of cancer patients require radiotherapy at some point during their disease course. However, the underestimation of radiotherapy’s role remains a widespread phenomenon.”

The proportion of cancer patients receiving radiotherapy in China is significantly lower than that in the United States and Canada. According to a report by the National Cancer Center, there were approximately 3.929 million new cancer cases in China in 2015, among whom only 919,000 patients opted for radiotherapy. This means that merely 23.4% of cancer patients received radiotherapy, whereas the corresponding figures in the United States and Canada were 63% and over 40%, respectively.

The root cause of the “underestimation of radiotherapy” phenomenon lies in the low penetration rate of radiotherapy equipment in China. In 2015, China had only 1,931 linear accelerators (the primary radiotherapy equipment), equating to just 1.4 units per million people; during the same period, the United States had 12.4 linear accelerators per million people. The low availability of such equipment has severely constrained the development of the radiotherapy specialty in China and further significantly impaired the overall standard of cancer treatment in the country.

“We can comprehensively enhance the clinical efficiency, treatment quality, operational effectiveness, and patient experience of radiotherapy centers,” stated Lin Yanglin. New Milestone Hospital Group will replicate its extensive hospital operations management expertise in the development of radiotherapy centers.

New Journey Hospital Group is one of the largest comprehensive hospital groups in China, serving as a reformer, leader, and innovator in social capital-funded healthcare. Its business portfolio spans hospitals, elderly care, internet healthcare, and capital platforms. The group holds controlling stakes in hospitals with a total bed capacity exceeding 10,000, providing systematic enhancement and support to its controlled hospitals across multiple dimensions, including discipline development, medical quality, nursing services, talent cultivation, mechanism innovation, performance reform, brand elevation, information technology, and business models.

Academician Yu Jinming is one of the principal pioneers of precision radiotherapy technology in China. He has made outstanding contributions to overcoming two major bottlenecks that constrain the efficacy of radiotherapy: precise target delineation and accurate radiation delivery. As a result of his research findings, oncology treatment guidelines in multiple countries, including the United States, Europe, Canada, and China, have been revised.

Academician Yu Jinming is a delegate to the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, a deputy to the 10th, 12th, and 13th National People’s Congresses of China, and the President of Shandong Cancer Hospital.

The Halcyon smart radiotherapy platform is the world’s first medical linear accelerator to achieve 100% image guidance. With advantages of high integration, high automation, and high intelligence, it elevates radiotherapy from traditional “precision radiotherapy” to “smart precision radiotherapy.”

Halcyon comprehensively enhances clinical efficiency, treatment quality, operational effectiveness, and patient experience. Furthermore, supported by the SmartCloud 4.0 radiotherapy platform, Halcyon enables primary healthcare institutions to deliver treatments under real-time guidance from tertiary hospitals.

Multiple leading global cancer centers have already installed and are using Halcyon, including MD Anderson Cancer Center, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and University Hospitals Leuven in Belgium.