Advanced therapies available in China, where they are offered and what to expect.
Proton and carbon-ion (heavy-ion) therapy are forms of particle radiotherapy that, for some tumors, concentrate the radiation dose in the tumor while sparing more surrounding tissue. China has a small but growing number of centers.
CAR-T cell therapy reprograms a patient’s own immune cells to attack certain blood cancers. China has approved several CAR-T products since 2021 and runs one of the world’s largest CAR-T clinical research programs.
Acupuncture is a core technique of traditional Chinese medicine. In Chinese hospitals it is mainly used for pain, nausea and rehabilitation, alongside conventional care.
Robot-assisted surgery is routine at China’s leading hospitals for cancers of the prostate, kidney, rectum, lung, esophagus and uterus, and China has also developed its own surgical robots.
TAVR replaces a narrowed aortic valve through a catheter, usually from the groin, without open-heart surgery. Leading Chinese heart centers have large TAVR programs, and China has approved several domestically developed valves.
Liver transplantation can cure selected patients with liver cancer or end-stage liver disease. Zhongshan Hospital’s team proposed the Shanghai–Fudan criteria for transplantation in liver cancer.
Gamma Knife radiosurgery treats small brain tumors, vascular malformations and some functional disorders with a single, precisely focused dose of radiation, usually without a hospital stay.
Cataract surgery replaces the clouded natural lens with a clear artificial lens. It is quick, usually done as a day procedure, and Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center ranks first in China for ophthalmology.