Recently, Prof. Shu Chang from the Department of Vascular Surgery, Second Xiangya Hospital, visited Egypt upon invitation to conduct surgeries alongside academic exchanges and cooperation. During the trip, China’s innovative medical technologies and experiences were introduced, and a strategic cooperation memorandum was signed with the Egyptian Vascular and Endovascular Society (EVES).
On his first day in Cairo, Prof. Shu Chang was invited to visit Wadi Al Nile Hospital, where he shared China's advanced experiences in the diagnosis and treatment of vascular surgical diseases with local expert counterparts. General Manager Hazen Khamis expressed his anticipation for establishing a long-standing partnership with Chinese experts in vascular surgery to facilitate in-depth collaboration and regular guided practices. This collaboration aims to provide specialized training to Egyptian physicians in the fields of vascular surgery and endovascular therapy.
On the second day, Prof. Shu Chang received an invitation to perform surgeries at Mansoura University and Gamal Abd Al Nasser Hospital in Alexandria. Mansoura University Hospital, directly affiliated with the Egyptian Ministry of Health, ranks third in medical education and clinical research in Egypt. Renowned for its high-level medical education and clinical research, the hospital enjoys a prestigious reputation in Egypt and the entire Middle East. Prof. Shu Chang, in joint hands with the team of Dr. Ahmed Eshra, treated a patient with complex aortic dissection. Since the patient’s left subclavian artery was involved, repairing merely with a covered stent into the thoracic aorta would not yield satisfactory results. Through extensive preoperative discussions between experts from both countries, Prof. Shu Chang decided to perform an in-situ fenestration on the left subclavian artery based on the thoracic aortic stent-graft repair, preserving the blood flow of the left subclavian artery while repairing the proximal rupture of the dissection. The surgery utilized a novel aortic stent graft system with proprietary technology—the Ankura™ Thoracic Aortic Stent Graft and the Futhrough™ Endovascular Needle System in combination with the CSkirt™ Windowed Skirt Stent. The surgery concluded smoothly, marking Egypt's first case of endovascular repair of complex thoracic aortic lesions through in-situ fenestration.
Gamal Abd Al Nasser Hospital, established in 1938, is one of the largest hospitals in Egypt. At this renowned institution, Prof. Shu Chang was invited to carry out endovascular repair surgery for another patient with a complex aortic dissection. This time, the patient's condition presented significant challenges, as there was no optimal proximal anchoring zone, and the descending aorta was severely twisted, greatly increasing the surgical difficulty. Prof. Shu Chang meticulously specified the surgical complexities to the team of Dr. Alaa Hashim and the attending experts, and developed in detail the surgical plan and solutions. During the procedure, the Ankura™ Thoracic Aortic Stent Graft and the Futhrough™ Endovascular Needle System in combination with the CSkirt™ Windowed Skirt Stent, were also utilized. Within half an hour, Prof. Shu Chang successfully completed the surgery, averting any intraoperative risky situations. Prof. Mohamed Hosni, Chairman of the EVES, expressed his honor to collaborate with Prof. Shu Chang. Facing such a perilous aortic pathology, Prof. Shu Chang's swift decision-making led to the successful completion of such a complex surgery. Not only did the patient attain superior treatment outcomes, valuable insights were also imparted to Prof. Mohamed Hosni's medical team.
It is worth noting that the aortic stent system used during this international exchange was jointly developed by Prof. Shu Chang and a Chinese enterprise. This system incorporates the "skirt” technique pioneered by Prof. Shu Chang. Presently, within the field of endovascular treatment in China, an increasing number of excellent domestic products have gained recognition from experts and hospitals. Innovative Chinese-made products have gradually stepped onto the international stage, earning global acclaim.
During his time in Egypt, Prof. Shu Chang as an invited guest attended the Egyptian Summit Forum on Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy organized by the EVES. During the conference, he shared China's innovative achievements in the treatment of aortic aneurysms and dissections, including the domestically developed Concave Supra-arch Branched Stent-graft System, CSkirt™ Windowed Skirt Stent, and Longuette™ Chimney Skirt Stent. His sharing attracted over Egypt more than 30 top experts in the cardiovascular surgery field to attend and learn.
In the presence of Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Egypt's current Minister of Health, and Ahmed Taha, former Minister of Health, Prof. Shu Chang and Prof. Mohamed Hosni, the Chairman of the EVES, officially signed the strategic cooperation agreement between the National Society of Vascular Surgery (NSVS) of China and the EVES.
Prof. Shu Chang often emphasizes, "There are no borders in medicine; doctors from different countries should strengthen exchanges and cooperation." As an internationally renowned expert in vascular surgery, Prof. Shu Chang has always emphasized academic exchanges with fellows worldwide and is actively engaged in academic promotion. He has conducted surgical demonstrations in 19 countries, including Germany, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, Georgia, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Argentina, Singapore, among others, totaling 178 surgeries. Among them are thirteen "national first" surgeries, and he promotes surgeries to more than ten countries along the Belt and Road Initiative. He has collaborated with multiple countries along the route, and signed memoranda of academic cooperation, contributing to the implementation of the country's Belt and Road Initiative through practical actions.
