Date and Time: May 11, 2008 at 10:30pm
Interviewee: Dr. Franco Lugnani, at Sheraton Kowloon Hotel in Hong Kong
President, International Society of Cryosurgery
Medical Specialist from Italy
Interviewers: A reporter team from Malaysia Press, at New Pearl River Hotel in Guangzhou of China
Ho Sin Khee (The Sin Chiew Daily)
Nicholas Lo Hua Kuong (The Borneo Post)
Lim Wey Wen (The Star)
Siaw Hui Meng (The International Times)
Chong Suk Chin (The See Hua Daily News)
Ong Eng Leong (The Long Life Magazine)

Mode of Interview: Teleconference

Reporter: Good evening, Dr. Franco Lugnani. We are a team of reporters from Malaysia Press. During the past few days, we visited Fuda Cancer Hospital in Guangzhou and conducted interviews there. We held a forum with some patients in the hospital from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Denmark, Spain and China. These patients spoke highly of the advanced technologies and high quality services in Fuda Cancer Hospital, especially their expertise in cryosurgery for the treatment of cancers. As the president of the International Society of Cryosurgery, would you talk about the use of cryosurgery for treatment of cancers ?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: I am most pleased to attend this interview. Initially I was supposed to meet all of you in Guangzhou. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, I was not able to obtain the visa in time. As a result, I had to stay in Hong Kong for the past few days. Fortunately, we can hold this teleconference together with the advancement in telecommunication.
Cryosurgery involves the application of freezing technology to destroy targeted cancerous cells. In fact, a few thousand years ago, people in ancient Greece used some freezing techniques to treat certain diseases, including tumors. The actual development of the modern cryosurgery just started in 1990’s. Cryosurgery is mainly used for the treatment of prostate cancer, kidney cancer, liver cancer etc. in America and Europe. Currently, the use of percutaneous cryosurgery for the treatment of prostate cancer has become routine. I have had the experiences by myself for more than one thousand cases. China has attained significant achievements in percutaneous cryosurgery, especially at Fuda Cancer Hospital in Guangzhou. Their experiences of several thousand cases of cryosurgery were amazing their counterparts in the Western. During the 14th World Conference on Cryosurgery at Beijing in November 2007, the amount ofcryosurgery cases they reported was most among all countries. During the conference of new techniques for cancer treatment at Djakarta, Indonesia this March, a demonstration on how percutaneous cryosurgery operation for lung cancer by Doctor Lizhi Niu was got highly praises. It was really impressive. Recently, I invited both Professor Kecheng Xu and Doctor Lizhi Niu to Spain and Italy for an academic exchange program, and all of our counterparts in the Western understood cryosurgery techniques and the important role in cancer treatments by their excellent experiences.

Reporter: Cryosurgery is not widely used in the World yet. For example, it was not reported in Malaysia. Could you please tell us what the reasons are?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: I think that is due to the insufficiency of medical information. More people did not pay attention to the benefits and success of this novel therapy. And, some clinical doctors who have been practicing traditional therapies are hard to accept new therapies initially. Some of them can not give up the “authority” they have built in their specialized fields. In fact, cryosurgery has helped to overcome much problems of the traditional therapies. For example, the efficacy of cryosurgery in the treatment of prostate cancer is just as good as traditional surgery. However, cryosurgery has much smaller wounds than those by traditional surgical operations. Patient can be discharged within one or two days after cryosurgery operation, and the wound is hardly visible. In the cases of liver cancer, only a few patients may be applicable for surgical excision of cancer, but cryosurgery is applicable in most of the cases. For pancreatic cancer, less than 5% of the cases can be surgically operated while in most cases cryosurgery operations can be performed. Fuda Cancer Hospital has lots of the experience on the field of cryosurgery. During the recent years, we frequently organize various academic activities on cryosurgery throughout the World. We held the 14th World Conference on Cryosurgery in Beijing last year. The next World Conference will be at Petersburg, Russia in 2009. More and more professionals registered the conference from year to year. Many medical participants from the Western countries have shown strong enthusiasm for cryosurgery.

Reporter: Are there any side effects on cryosurgery ?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: For any therapy, side effects usually are unavoidable. While cryogen destroys cancerous tissues, some normal tissues will unavoidably be involved. Abalation may also affect some arteries leading to bleeding and functionality of some organs. However, the side effects of cryosurgery are very much less than those of traditional treatments such as surgical operation, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Cryosurgery will not lead to diminution of blood cells, hair loss and immunological suppression. In fact, cryosurgery helps patients to improve their immunological function in order to the eliminate remaining cancerous cells.

Reporter: What types of cancers are most appropriate for cryosurgery?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: As I have mentioned earlier, initially cryosurgery was used for the treatment of prostate cancer. Now, it is used for tens type of cancer. With the advancement in imaging technology, we can observe and monitor the whole process of cryosurgery procedures with the help of ultrasound and CT.According to the experience of Fuda Cancer Hospital cryosurgery produces excellent results in the treatment of liver cancer, lung cancer, pancreatic cancer and breast cancer.

Reporter: What is your assessment for the work on cryosurgery by Fuda Cancer Hospital
Dr. Franco Lugnani: The hospital has done more excellent works on cryosurgery. I respect very much the achievements by both Professor Xu and Doctor Niu who have done best works for both the amount of cases and the effective results.

Reporter: Do you plan to work together with Fuda Cancer Hospital
Dr. Franco Lugnani: It is most definitely. I have been invited to be a visiting professor of the hospital, and will work together with them soon. Firstly, we will discuss some improvement of cryosurgery techniques. Probably, we will set up some animal experiments. The primary purpose of my current trip was discussion for research cooperation with Fuda. Because of the visa problem, I have to delay it until the end of this July.

Reporter: As a famous scholar, medical specialist in the World, and the president of the International Society of Cryosurgery, what is your plan on the cooperation with Fuda ?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: As I have said, we will do some fundamental experiments to improve cryosurgery techniques. We plan to explore the most ideal condition of cryosurgery through animal modes. Next, I will show a cryosurgery operation on prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is a common cancer in the Western World, but relatively is rare in China. We will share our knowledge and experience of cryosurgery treatment for prostate cancer in Fuda. We will recommend patients who are suffering from lung cancer, liver cancer and pancreatic cancer, etc to Fuda Cancer Hospital from Europe. Or, we can invite Professor Xu and Doctor Niu to Europe for clinical therapy. Currently we are engaging in a research combined cryosurgery and the stem cells. I expect that Professor Xu and Doctor Niu will be able to join this project.

Reporter: The new building in Fuda will be completed soon. What is your expectancy ?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: People told me that the new building will be first class on construction quality. I hope that the building will be an international center of cryosurgery. I will lead medical specialists from the World, especially from America and Europe, to Fuda for various cooperation. Professor Xu and Doctor Niu gave a perfect impression to the Western, especially their hard working and stringent scientific styles. I believe that the new building will be a most important center for cryosurgery in the World.

Reporter: It is late at night now. Would you make a general evaluation for Fuda Cancer Hospital?

Dr. Franco Lugnani: I am glad to do it. Although Fuda Cancer Hospital is not a big hospital, I am stirred by their the achievements. My friends in Europe also gave high praises to Fuda. Firstly, their cryosurgery techniques, especially percutaneous cryosurgery, is best in the World. Probably, no other hospitals in the World is better than Fuda in this field. Secondly, besides cryosurgery, Fuda also has other important therapies methods such as radio-frequency therapy, gene therapy, invasive therapy, anti-vascular growth therapy, immunotherapy，etc. These therapies may be available in some hospitals, but Fuda Cancer Hospital is one of few hospitals in the World because Fuda is able to combine these therapies and decide an integrative and personalized successful plan based on patient’s individual condition. I respect their contribution very much.

Reporter: Dr. Franco Lugnani. We appreciate your interview very much tonight, and welcome you to make medical lectures in Malaysia soon.

Dr. Franco Lugnani : I am very willing to do that. I will be in ShenZhen on July 24 this year to attend a seminar concerning new techniques of cancer treatment, which will be in charge by Professor Kecheng Xu. If I have spare time after that, I will visit Kuala Lumpur. Some Press in Malaysia has invited me to give medical lectures. I hope to make the trip together with Professor Xu and Doctor Niu, where we may supplement each other on the medical lectures.

Reporters: Thank you again, and good night.

reporters interviewed Professor Franco via video