Chapter 1509: 1462 Director SB of Queen Elizabeth Hospital

It shouldn't be a problem. Zheng Ren said: "For the Nobel Prize project, what's needed now is surgical volume; as long as we reach a certain scale, submit the data, and wait for the review process to proceed, that's enough."

They didn't ask you to personally perform the procedure, right?

Zheng Ren nodded.

Professor Yang relaxed at once, he chuckled and said: "After interventional surgery, how long until we can perform surgery?"

The patient has an indication, I'll mention it first. Zheng Ren's expression turned slightly serious: "Old Yang, you know I used to be a general surgery specialist, then I switched to interventional."

Professor Yang nodded.

After interventional embolization, for tumors over 5 cm that radiofrequency ablation can't resolve in one go, if the patient consents, surgery can be done. For tumors under 5 cm, I think surgery is unnecessary.

Professor Yang's face looked a bit grim.

This is the sectarian rivalry in the medical field.

Likewise, for treating liver cancer, surgeons definitely think surgery is the best method, while interventional doctors definitely think interventional surgery is the best.

As for which method is better, it depends on the doctor's skill, the patient's condition, and other factors.

The main thing is—whose chair you're sitting in.

A completely objective and fair person does not exist.

The most typical example is the competition between coronary artery bypass grafting and circulating coronary stent procedures.

In just ten years, surgical methods have been utterly defeated.

Thoracic medicine now holds only a tiny foothold; even the profession of perfusionist has been collateral damage and is fading fast.

The competition between liver cancer interventional embolization plus radiofrequency ablation and liver cancer surgical resection has just begun.

Zheng Ren clearly stated his attitude; from a technical standpoint, there's absolutely no problem.

But Professor Yang felt as unpleasant as having swallowed a fly.

If we agree, would that be biting the hand that feeds us? Future hepatobiliary business volume, surgical volume…

Never mind, can't think about all that.

Professor Yang instantly sorted out the stakes involved.

Whether hepatobiliary surgery can win this battle is related to me, but my influence is limited.

This is a battle between disciplines across the nation, even internationally.

Back then, the thoracic field was full of strong contenders—how did it end? Defeated by a group of internal medicine doctors!

Routed, each could only silently switch careers—or else go fight for a share of the general thoracic pie.

If hepatobiliary truly can't beat interventional, that's just the tide. Still, I'm striving for the deputy chief role in hepatobiliary surgery; becoming chief in a few years would be realistic.

"All right." Professor Yang, having figured it out, replied directly: "Then it's settled; I'll admit liver cancer patients sized 5–10 cm."

There's a saying about tumors of this diameter.

After interventional embolization, the tumor necroses from ischemia, first swelling then shrinking. With timely surgery, it will absolutely not be less than 5 cm in diameter.

"When can we start? I'll give Xinglin Yuan a heads‑up." Zheng Ren said.

"I happen to have an 8 cm liver cancer patient on hand; how about tomorrow?" Professor Yang asked carefully.

Zheng Ren laughed.

Just right?

There's no such thing as just‑right in this world.

Unexpected, yet reasonable.

But this is Professor Yang having done solid prep work; if I agree, we go ahead; if not, we do surgical resection—either way, no loss.

"Then it's settled." Zheng Ren said: "Old Yang, if there's nothing else, I'll be off."

"Fine, I'll contact your doctors below. Professor Liu—will he work? Or should I contact Professor Rudolf Wagner?" Professor Yang asked.

"Let's get in touch with Old Liu; it's more convenient." Zheng Ren said.

"All right." Professor Yang happily agreed.

……

"Boss, you're pretty tough." Walking out of General Surgery, Su Yun said with a smile.

"We have to do this; we can't just follow Old Yang's lead." Zheng Ren said lightly.

"Or we could leave a mark to avoid future drama." Su Yun said with a grin: "Simon Bramhall, you know who that is?"

"Simon? SB—how could I forget?"

"The director of Queen Elizabeth Hospital, a big name in liver transplants—you tell me, why would he be willing to engrave his name on a transplanted liver?" Su Yun said somewhat emotionally.

This is a brain‑dead move in the medical world.

This Dr. Simon is famous.

It's not because his liver transplants are that good… Of course, his skill is world‑top. But Simon's fame under heaven comes from engraving SB—the abbreviation of his name—on transplanted livers.

He personally admitted to having engraved his name on the transplanted liver in only two liver transplant operations.

Yet this very act has exposed him to lawsuits.

In the view of this senior hepatobiliary surgeon Simon, such superficial burn marks on the liver surface cause almost no harm to the liver.

Thus this behavior satisfies his desire for a memento while harming the patient hardly at all—though out of the ordinary, it's stimulating and perfect.

Su Yun joked about this, and Zheng Ren didn't mind.

I would never actually do that; it's just a joke.

"Just like Professor Simon Bramhall's subtitle abbreviation, this is SB doing an SB thing."

"No need to engrave." Zheng Ren said: "My hepatobiliary surgery may not be top‑tier yet, but it's close."

Hearing Zheng Ren's tone, Su Yun felt a surge of annoyance.

Does he have no sense of limits at all?

"The most important thing is that minimally invasive surgery is the big trend of the future. Liver cancer interventional surgery treatment may one day replace liver cancer surgery." Zheng Ren said: "Just like how coronary artery bypass surgery is becoming fewer and fewer nowadays."

Su Yun sighed.

"I really don't know why you chose Cardiothoracic Surgery before." Zheng Ren laughed and said: "Take a look, because you chose Thoracic, the entire Thoracic field has directly collapsed."

"Hey, what does that have to do with me."

"You can't possibly do heart transplants for your whole life, can you?" Zheng Ren said: "Come do interventional with me?"

"Eat the line."

"The robotic arm is ready soon, operated externally, completely free of eating the line. Look at your Thoracic Department, you were the earliest to develop the application of the Da Vinci Robotic Arm, there's basically no need for this, right?" Zheng Ren laughed, tempting Su Yun like a devil.

Su Yun's heart stirred for a moment.

He also knew that minimally invasive surgery is the big trend of the future; Zhao Yunlong's side has already started considering using thoracoscopy to do aortic arch replacement surgery.

But even though the incision of thoracoscopic surgery is very small, it cannot avoid the fact that internal damage is actually as large as that of open surgery.

Interventional surgery, especially interventional surgery with the addition of 3D technology, is a surgical model that will smash the surgeons' rice bowl.

I'll go my own way, leaving you with no way out!

Just think about it, it's pretty cool.

Su Yun blew out a breath and said: "When I go back, I'll contact Ning Shu and ask if we can first get a robotic arm for us."