Department of Hematology

The Department of Hematology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital has a long history, being a pioneer in modern hematology in China and one of the earliest bases for training hematology professionals. In 1932, the first hematology laboratory in China was established within the Internal Medicine Department of Peking Union Medical College, followed by the establishment of a hematology specialty group in 1934. The Department of Hematology was formally established under the large internal medicine framework in 1980. In 1981, it was approved by the Ministry of Education as a doctoral training base. In 1990, it was recognized by the National Education Commission as a key national discipline in hematology (in collaboration with the Institute of Hematology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences). In 1992, it became a postdoctoral research station. In 2006, it was approved by the Ministry of Health and Beijing Municipality as one of the first training bases for hematology specialists. In 2011, it was recognized as one of the first clinical key disciplines by the Ministry of Health.

Since the establishment of the specialty group, the department has recognized that hematology is an integral part of internal medicine and an important component of a comprehensive hospital. The clinical focus of the department is directed towards the entire internal medicine, addressing both primary hematological diseases and various hematological issues faced by patients from other specialties. This is the characteristic and long-term direction of the Department of Hematology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Since its establishment, especially since becoming a department, it has developed evenly across sub-specialties such as red blood cell diseases, hematologic malignancies, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and bleeding and thrombotic disorders, leveraging the hospital's guiding principle of closely integrating medical care and research, and promoting clinical and basic research. Currently, the department's clinical comprehensive medical level is among the top in the country, particularly leading in red blood cell diseases and bleeding and thrombotic disorders. The department also actively provides hematological support for other departments in diagnosing and treating critical and complex cases, serving as a backbone for the hospital as a national consultation center for difficult and severe cases.

The department currently has three wards with a total of 62 beds, including Ward 1 in the East Hospital with 32 beds, Ward 2 in the West Hospital with 18 beds, and Ward 3, the hematopoietic stem cell transplantation ward, with 12 beds, including 6 high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter beds. The department also has a chemotherapy outpatient clinic in the East Hospital and a hemophilia treatment center that also serves as the Beijing Hemophilia Management Center in the West Hospital. Currently, the department admits approximately 4,000 inpatients annually, with around 50,000 outpatient visits and 2,000 consultations both within and outside the hospital each year.

The department has long placed great emphasis on talent development and the cultivation of academic leaders. Under the leadership of outstanding pioneers and authoritative experts in hematology such as Deng Jiadong, Zhang An, Zhang Zhinan, Wu Yongji, Shen Ti, Zhao Yongqiang, and Zhou Daobin, it has maintained a leading position in the country. The department currently has 19 active physicians, including 7 professors, 4 associate professors, and 8 attending physicians. It has four specialized groups focusing on red blood cell diseases, hematologic tumors, thrombotic and hemostatic diseases, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Each specialized group has experienced and well-structured experts providing services to patients.

Since its establishment, the department has adhered to a weekly 'department rounds' system attended by all physicians, concentrating the expertise of various specialists to ensure the diagnosis and treatment of difficult cases (including outpatient cases). Over the years, experts such as Zhang Zhinan, Li Rongsheng, Pan Jiaqi, Shan Yuandong, Wu Yongji, Shen Ti, Zhao Yongqiang, and Zhou Daobin have served or currently serve as health physicians for the Central Health Bureau and have received multiple commendations and awards from the Party and government.

Since its establishment, several expert professors from the department have held extensive social positions in various medical professional societies, making significant contributions to the development of the discipline nationwide. Among them, Professor Deng Jiadong served as the first chairperson of the Hematology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association. Professor Zhang An served as the vice chairperson of the first and second sessions of the Hematology Branch; Professor Zhang Zhinan served as the vice chairperson of the third and fourth sessions and chairperson of the fifth session. Professor Shen Ti served as vice chairperson of the Hematology Branch and chairperson of the Internal Medicine Branch of the Chinese Medical Association. Professor Zhao Yongqiang currently (previously) serves as vice president of the Hematology Physician Branch of the Chinese Physician Association and has served as a member of the Hematology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association and deputy leader of the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Group. Professor Zhou Daobin currently serves as vice chairperson of the Hematology Society of the Chinese Medical Association, vice president of the Hematology Physician Branch of the Chinese Physician Association, and chairperson of the Beijing Branch of the Chinese Medical Association. Additionally, several professors in the department have held or currently hold editorial positions in core journals such as the Chinese Journal of Hematology, Chinese Journal of Experimental Hematology, Clinical Hematology, and Chinese Journal of Internal Medicine.

Laboratory diagnosis is crucial in the diagnosis and treatment of hematological diseases. The department currently has 5 laboratory technicians and has established specialized laboratories including bone marrow and blood cell morphology, molecular biology, cytogenetics, and cell biology, covering various fields of hematological diseases. It can perform all routine tests involved in the diagnosis and treatment of common hematological diseases, including blood and bone marrow morphology, anemia-related tests, flow cytometry, chromosome analysis, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), hematopoietic stem cell culture, fusion gene detection, and coagulation factor testing. Additionally, it can conduct tests for hereditary thrombophilia and coagulation factor antibodies, which are performed in only a few hospitals in the country. Among these, the blood cell morphology laboratory is highly authoritative in the country, having participated in international quality control tests for over ten years, achieving an excellent accuracy rate of over 95%. The thrombosis and hemostasis laboratory undergoes quarterly international quality control for coagulation factor testing by the WFH, consistently receiving excellent or good results.

The department currently has 4 active doctoral supervisors and 5 master's supervisors, training 5-6 graduate students and over 10 trainees each year. It also undertakes over 40 hours of teaching in diagnostic medicine and internal medicine hematology for undergraduate students at Peking Union Medical College each year. Furthermore, it provides training for hematology specialists and internal medicine residents in Beijing. Over the years, more than 10 physicians from the department have been awarded the title of excellent teacher by Beijing Municipality and the institution.

The Department of Hematology has applied for and completed over 30 national and provincial-level research projects, receiving three third-class awards for scientific and technological progress from the Ministry of Health, one second-class award for scientific and technological progress from the State, one second-class award for scientific and technological progress from the Chinese Medical Association, and one second-class award for scientific and technological progress from Beijing Municipality. The department has received 8 research achievement awards from Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Currently, the department's research focus is on the study of iron metabolism mechanisms, the pathogenesis of bone marrow failure diseases, bone disease in myeloma, epidemiological studies of hemophilia and thrombotic diseases, tumor microenvironment studies in lymphoma, clinical and basic research on amyloidosis, the pathogenesis of POEMS syndrome, and the establishment of comprehensive treatment systems.

The Department of Hematology has edited over 50 monographs and, in recent years, has published an average of over 10 SCI articles and dozens of articles in domestic core journals annually.