Among the 153 High-impact Publications:
Impact Report
24
(data as of 31 December 2024)
Major Awards and Honours
Received in 2024
Professor Siew Ng is the first female clinician-scientist selected as a New Cornerstone Investigator in China Mainland. She also received the BOCHK Science and Technology Innovation Prize (STIP) for her outstanding scientific research achievements in the field of “Life and Health”.
Professor Francis Chan receives Guanghua
Engineering Science and Technology Award. He is the
only Hong Kong scholar in medicine and health to
receive the award in 2024.
With Professor Jason Yam as Principal Investigator, the “Effect
of Low-Concentration Atropine Eyedrops vs Placebo on
Myopia Incidence in Children - The LAMP2 Randomised
Clinical Trial” study received the “China's Important
Medical Advancements in 2023” award from the
Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.
Professor Yu Jun received the “Basic Medicine Award”
at the 24th Wu Jieping – Paul Janssen Medical and
Pharmaceutical Award. She is the only recipient from a
Hong Kong institution.
Professor Dennis Lo became the first Chinese scholar
to receive the reputable Jiménez Díaz Lecture Award.
CU Medicine’s Centre for Clinical Research and
Biostatistics won two gold medals and a special
award at the 49th International Exhibition of
Inventions Geneva.
01
Big Data to
Transform Diabetes Care
01
In the current era of AI, advances in big data analytics impact many aspects of our daily lives – including chronic disease management. CU Medicine’s Diabetes and Endocrine Research Group is leading a transformative project that aims to deliver major changes to advance diabetes prevention and care. Entitled “Using Data to Transform Diabetes Care and Patient Lives”, the project has been granted over HK$80 million in funding in the 12th round of the University Grants Committee Areas of Excellence Scheme.
Over 10% of the population of Hong Kong are affected by diabetes. Globally, more than 580 million people live with this chronic disease, which can pose significant health risks. Furthermore, around one in every six pregnant women report abnormal blood glucose levels during pregnancy, and this can have significant health implications for the women and the next generation. This is of particular concern given more and more young people are now being diagnosed with diabetes in early adulthood.
Given these challenges posed by diabetes, the group has made major contributions to tackle the diabetes in Asia, including unravelling the unique characteristics of Asian patients with diabetes, the identification of Chinese-relevant genetic markers for diabetes and its complications, and invented the web-based Joint Asia Diabetes Evaluation (JADE®) program, using proprietary technology to stratify risk of diabetes, empower patients’ self-management and promote doctor-patient communication.
Building on these foundations, and focusing on several knowledge and implementation gaps identified in the recent Lancet commissioned report on Diabetes, this new project aims to use data-driven approaches to transform diabetes care. Firstly, it aims to establish a multi-centre Hong Kong Gestational Diabetes Register and conduct a three-year intervention trial, incorporating wearables and other technologies, to prevent diabetes in high risk women and improve the health of future generations. Secondly, the team will implement a multi-component psychosocial-behavioural intervention to improve care for young people with diabetes and obesity. Thirdly, the project team will utilise territory-wide big data to evaluate clinical outcomes of newer glucose-lowering agents in real-world scenarios and to guide future treatment selection. Finally, it aims to develop an educational platform and regional network of collaborating centres to share best practices with global partners.
Recognised as an International Diabetes Federation Centre of Excellence, the CU Medicine team will integrate innovative biomedicine, translational research, and health education to advance diabetes care, improving the lives of people with or at risk of diabetes, and positioning Hong Kong as a global leader in the field of diabetes and non-communicable diseases.
02
The Science of
Precision
Precision medicine is widely recognised for being more effective and safe for specific patients. CU Medicine’s Prof. Brigette Ma is taking it to the next level to improve treatment paradigms and prognosis for nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC).
Over the past two decades, CU Medicine’s team has been at the forefront of NPC treatment development. The 2002 report showed the effectiveness of concurrent chemoradiotherapy for stage III-IVa NPC, indicating a significant 20% improvement in survival rate. Since then, the treatment method has become standard for leading global professional bodies such as American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO), and the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO). Prof. Ma is turning the new focus to “Precision Immunotherapy,” deciphering the tumour microenvironment (TME) of NPC, and then translating this clinically into new therapeutic approaches and biomarkers. Following international and transdisciplinary collaboration with researchers from the U.S. and Singapore, the team has developed new drug combinations and become the first group to evaluate dual targeting of anti-PD1 and LAG3 immunotherapy in recurrent or metastatic NPC (R/M NPC) in a multinational phase III trial with nasopharyngeal oncology. Furthermore, the team has completed an in-house phase II study of avelumab (anti-PDL1 immunotherapy) and axitinib (anti-VEGFR inhibitor), while collaborating with data scientists from South Korea and Singapore to evaluate an AI-driven pathology platform to predict survival following immunotherapy.
As the team is engaged in multiple projects, the overarching goal is to improve the progression-free survival (PFS) of patients with R/M NPC undergoing first-line chemotherapy-immunotherapy. The potential magnitude of benefit is estimated to increase the one-year PFS from 40% to 52.6%. It is also expected to provide significant survival benefits and cost-effectiveness compared to chemotherapy alone. Through advanced methodologies, global education, and innovative therapies, Hong Kong’s contributions are shaping a brighter future for nasopharyngeal cancer care, significantly prolonging patient survival and enhancing quality of life.
02
03
Managing Myopia –
Without the Glasses
It is common to see Hong Kong children wearing glasses. Childhood myopia is a prevalent condition in the city, ranking highest globally in severity and prevalence. The Hong Kong Children Eye Study, initiated by CU Medicine in 2015, has reached out to 50,000 children aged between six and eight, along with their parents, and identified significant lifestyle and genetic factors affecting myopia progression.
In pursuit of prevention strategies, the research team conducted the Low-concentration Atropine for Myopia Progression (LAMP1) study in 2018. It is the world’s first randomised placebo-controlled trial of low-concentration atropine eye drops for myopia treatment, involving 438 Chinese children in Hong Kong. The findings indicated that 0.05%, 0.025%, and 0.01% atropine eye drops are effective in slowing myopia progression with negligible side effects, whilst the 0.05% atropine is the optimal treatment, reducing progression by 67% without adverse effects.
Building on these results, the LAMP2 study published in JAMA in 2023 demonstrated that 0.05% atropine can prevent the onset of myopia in children by 47% without significant adverse effects. This discovery presents a novel intervention for preventing myopia, earning praises from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and being selected as China’s Important Medical Advancements in 2023. Furthermore, Prof. Jason Yam received the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars and has been elected to Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences in acknowledgement of his work.
The Hong Kong Children Eye Study reached out to low-income families and children with special education needs (SEN). The team provided more than 450 children eye care education workshops at schools. The initiative involved more than 120 eye doctors, 20 nurses and optometrists, 520 medical students, 170 nursing students, 5,300 secondary school students, and 1,300 volunteer workers.
The commercial sector also collaborated in the production of the eye drops. A start-up enterprise involving Prof. Yam, OCUS Innovation (HK), has obtained support from Hong Kong Government and has been admitted to the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Incubation Programme.
04
Microbiome Innovation:
From Idea to Real-World Impact
At the heart of CU Medicine’s mission is not only the relentless pursuit of academic excellence and scientific discovery, but also a strong commitment to maximising the positive impact of our work through knowledge transfer and entrepreneurship. Our team of gastroenterologists has demonstrated how transforming expert knowledge into tangible solutions delivers meaningful benefits. Their approach brings about real change for patients on local, national, and global scales, reinforcing our belief that true value arises when professional expertise is converted into solutions that address real-world healthcare challenges.
The Beginning of a Magical Journey
This transformative journey began with a brainstorming session between Professor Francis Chan, Choh-Ming Li Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics, and Professor Siew Ng, Associate Dean (Research) of CU Medicine and Croucher Professor of Medical Sciences. Their initial ideas, first sketched on a napkin at a local café, envisioned personalised treatments and analytics based on the gut microbiome.
As a first step, the Microbiota I-Center (MagIC) was established as Hong Kong’s InnoCentre focused on developing novel diagnostics and therapeutics targeting the microbiome. During the pandemic, MagIC gained international recognition by showing that gut microbiome markers could predict COVID-19 severity and the likelihood of developing “long COVID.”
By late 2019, Professor Chan and Professor Ng established a CUHK biotechnology spin-off, GenieBiome. The GenieBiome Molecular and Microbiome Laboratory now provides novel gut-microbe diagnostics such as a stool-sample test for the early detection of colon cancer. The test offers a non-invasive and more affordable alternative to traditional colonoscopy, significantly improving opportunities for timely treatment.
MOMmy Cohort: Exploring the Mother–Baby Microbiome Connection
Set up to investigate the influence of gut microbiota in pregnant mothers and babies’ lifelong health, the MOMmy (short for MOther-infant Microbiota transMission and its link to long term health of babY) cohort study in 2019 revealed that mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have distinct microbiome roles during pregnancy, which leave lasting “fingerprints” on their infants’ gut microbiome for up to a year. These are associated with neurodevelopmental changes, such as a larger head circumference, potentially indicating early neurodevelopmental disorders. Professor Zhang Lin, Assistant Professor of the Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, and Professor Siew Ng’s team used metagenomic sequencing to identify reduced microbial diversity and increased abundance of certain pathogenic species in GDM mothers and their infants.
The MOMmy project follows babies for up to seven years, collecting comprehensive data and biological samples to understand microbiome development. Focusing on Asian populations, the long-term goal is to establish representative birth cohorts in China to enable early screening and interventions for common infant diseases using microbiome analysis.
Gut Microbiome and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Another CUHK spin-off, MicroSigX, was launched to focus on developing innovative non-invasive diagnostic solutions. CU Medicine published groundbreaking research in Nature Microbiology identifying significant changes across four kingdoms of microbial species (archaea, bacteria, fungi, viruses) in the gut microbiome of children with ASD. Leveraging machine learning, the team developed MSX Metagenie® — the world’s first AI-powered multikingdom microbial biomarker technology. This novel technology received the FDA Breakthrough Device Designation and would be launched commercially by MicroSigX in Hong Kong in late 2025, followed by planned expansion to Chinese Mainland and the United States.
In parallel, a pilot clinical study evaluated SCM06, a gut microbiome modulator designed to boost y-Aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter often depleted in ASD. Over 12 weeks, 30 children with ASD experienced a 15-20% reduction in sensory and anxiety symptoms, suggesting that microbiome modulation may offer a safe and effective therapeutic option. SCM06 has been successfully commercialised by GenieBiome.
Impact of Disinfection Practices on Allergy and Eczema
During the pandemic, a CU Medicine study found a 46% rise in toddler allergies in Hong Kong, linked to diminished beneficial gut bacteria caused by vigorous disinfection practices. This research underscores the significance of the “gut-skin axis,” the interplay of gut microbes and skin health. Excessive hygiene and antibiotic overuse limit beneficial bacteria, disrupting immune development and further upsetting microbial imbalance.
To address eczema, CU Medicine developed two oral live microbiome formulas – SIM03 for children and SIM05 for adults – utilising microencapsulation to promote gut colonisation. Pilot studies indicated improvements in eczema severity, quality of life, and sleep, alongside increases in beneficial gut bacteria. These results were published in Scientific Reports.
Entrepreneurship and Global Vision
Through research and commercialisation, CU Medicine demonstrates a commitment to innovation that serves society. Professor Chan emphasises that commercialisation should not focus on profit but rather transform life-changing ideas into marketable solutions. This approach attracts international investment and extends Hong Kong’s impact to the Greater Bay Area, Southeast Asia, and beyond.
