China's First Pathology-Focused Medical Group Files IPO Prospectus

On April 15, the Huaxia Pathologist Group was officially established in Beijing, marking the first pathology specialist physician group in China. Concurrently, the “Huaxia Pathology Academy” was also announced to have officially launched. At the launch event, Zheng Jie, Vice Chairman of the Pathology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association; Chen Bo, representing hospital directors; Deng Yunte, representing contracted pathology experts; Li Hongbo, CEO of Fenlan Medical; Xie Zhengxin, CTO; and Wang Qi, COO, jointly inaugurated the “Huaxia Pathologist Group” and the “Huaxia Pathology Academy,” and presented appointment letters to the contracted experts.

Li Hongbo stated that the "Huaxia Pathologists Group" will integrate scarce pathology expert resources from both domestic and international sources, leveraging information technology to address pathological diagnosis challenges in primary care hospitals. Meanwhile, relying on the "Huaxia Pathology Academy," it will provide systematic, continuous, and multi-faceted training through both online and offline channels, accelerating the professional development of pathologists in primary care settings and young pathologists, thereby enhancing comprehensive pathological diagnostic capabilities.

Li Hongbo

Professor Zheng Jie, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Society of Pathology, believes that the emergence of the Huaxia Pathologists Group offers a promising approach to addressing many of the current challenges facing the pathology industry.

Li Hongbo told VCBeat that the Huaxia Pathologists Group differs from other physician groups in two major ways: “First, we have adopted an online-offline integrated model from the outset. Second, radiology serves as our upstream sector, while surgery constitutes our downstream sector. Our pathologists can complete their work without needing to be physically present at grassroots hospitals, leveraging our cloud platform technology—this is also what distinguishes us from surgeons.”

Starting with Pathology to Break the Impasse in Tiered Diagnosis and Treatment

In the past two years, physician groups have developed rapidly in China, with dozens of various types of physician groups established successively. This has effectively promoted the policy of physicians’ independent practice and optimized the rational allocation of medical resources. However, among the numerous physician groups, there is currently no true pathology-specific physician group.

As the “gold standard” for disease diagnosis recognized by the medical community, pathological diagnosis faces various challenges due to systemic and institutional factors, including prolonged training cycles for pathologists, a severe shortage of specialists, excessively low examination fees, and insufficient attention from hospitals. Under the current national initiative to vigorously promote tiered diagnosis and treatment, the level of pathological diagnosis in hospitals directly impacts the diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities for various diseases at primary care institutions. As a foundational department within hospitals, enhancing the capacity of pathology departments is of critical importance.

By establishing the “Huaxia Pathologist Group” and “Huaxia Pathology Academy,” we will integrate domestic and international pathologist resources. Leveraging the pathology cloud platform and relying on the Huaxia Pathology Academy, we will engage in extensive and in-depth collaborations with secondary and tertiary hospitals. This initiative will comprehensively promote the rational allocation and utilization of high-quality pathological resources, spanning from comprehensive competency training for physicians and technicians, to the diagnosis of complex and challenging pathological cases, and the development of subspecialty programs.

Regarding the collaboration model, Li Hongbo stated that by contracting pathology experts and partnering with primary care hospitals, the initiative establishes a foothold in the pathology departments of these institutions. It facilitates pathology diagnostic services through remote digital pathology diagnosis and central laboratory operations, while jointly cultivating grassroots pathology talent in collaboration with Huaxia Pathology Academy. This approach integrates all aspects of the pathology diagnostic process, effectively channeling high-quality medical resources to primary care hospitals, enhancing their pathological diagnostic capabilities, and addressing the challenges associated with tiered diagnosis and treatment.

Currently, 120 contracts have been signed.Multiple pathology experts; the Pathologist Group achieved nationwide coverage in China in 2017

The reason why Fenlan Medical was able to establish China's first pathology specialist physician group is closely related to the ten-year accumulation of its subsidiary, "Huaxia Pathology Network."

Huaxia Pathology Network, established in 2006, has attracted over 30,000 registered physicians through online lectures, academic translations and compilations, and professional discussions. Among them, 9,600 are pathologists with real-name registration, accounting for 96% of the pathologist community in China, making it the largest online community for pathologists in the country. Since its inception in 2006, Huaxia Pathology Network has hosted more than 1,000 online lectures, invited over 300 experts, accumulated more than 500,000 online lecture attendances, facilitated discussions on over 600,000 challenging cases, and published more than sixteen translated and compiled monographs. Within the Chinese pathologist community, Huaxia Pathology Network is recognized as a highly authoritative platform, boasting high industry awareness and reputation. It ranks first among domestic professional websites in terms of information exchange, click-through rates, and overall influence.

Li Hongbo stated that over the past decade, Huaxia Pathology Network has provided a platform for communication, sharing, and learning for pathologists across China, earning a strong reputation and accumulating substantial resources in the field of pathology. It is reported that the Huaxia Pathology Physician Group has signed cooperation agreements with more than 120 experts both domestically and internationally, becoming one of the largest physician groups in China. The group has also conducted pilot programs at multiple hospitals for over six months.

It is reported that in 2016, Huaxia Pathologists Group planned to establish collaborative partnerships with more than 60 secondary and tertiary hospitals across China. During its operations, the group would continuously explore and consolidate experience in management, operation, and service delivery, while optimizing its allocation mechanisms. Li Hongbo projected that the pathologist group would achieve nationwide coverage in China by 2017.