The Indonesia Cryoablation Centre, a joint-venture project between the Guangzhou Fuda Cancer Hospital and Garding Plut Hospital of Jakarta, was officially open in February 2008. The opening ceremony was graced by Dr. Franco of Italy, president of the International Cryosurgery Society. The Third National Cancer Symposium, Indonesia was also held at the same time. On the third day, the ‘Test’ began. There was a live television broadcast on treatment of lung cancer by cryoablation. It was conducted by Dr. Niu Lizhi and assisted by Dr. Liu Zhengping, the director of our Indonesian office and a doctor from Gading Pluit Hospital. Dr. Franco, our consultant, and I were in charge of commentary outside the operation theatre.
The patient was a 78-years old man who had non-small cell lung cancer adjacent to the aorta and the main bronchus. The tumor was about 5cm in size. The whole process of treatment was watched keenly by more than 300 doctors and millions of TV viewers across Indonesia. Under CT guidance, Dr. Niu Lizhi selected the appropriate puncture sites where local anesthesia was performed. A 1.7cm cryo-probe was inserted percutaneously into the centre region of the tumor. This was followed by the second and third cryo-probes. The three cryo-probes inserted into the tumor were clearly shown on TV screen.
This was followed by the freezing process whereby argon gas was passed through the cryo-probes producing some hissing sound in the process. After 10 minutes, helium gas was passed through the cryo-probes to thaw and heat up the tumor. After 10 minutes, the freezing process resumed, which was followed by another heating and thawing process for 5 minutes. It was time to see whether the ablation was properly done and whether the entire tumor was frozen.
I was much tensed, my breathing was heavy and my blood pressure seemed to have gone up. We were in Indonesia with a Chinese population of 15 million. “How are we to face the people if the cryoablation turns up to be a failure?” I asked. “We are not representing our hospital solely, but we are also representing China as well!” I told myself.
At last, the TV screen showed the CT images of the tumor; the tumor site had turned dark instead of a white patch showing that ice crystals had been formed in the entire tumor. The crowd roared into a loud applause. All the Indonesian and Swiss medical specialists shook hands and hugged me. My eyes were wet and I said silently, “China, my beloved country, we at Fuda has done you proud!”
We were presented certificates of appreciation and Fuda Cancer Hospital was given the accreditation as the Asian-Pacific Regional Training Centre by Dr. Franco of Italy, the president of the International Cryosurgery Society.