Early in the 1970s, the former Director of the Department of General Surgery, Professor Zhang Wanhua initiated the experimental research on organ transplantation. In the 1980s, several doctors were sent by the hospital to the transplantation centers in Great Britain, U.S.A., France , etc, for further study and research on transplantation, they continued their research both theoretically and experimentally when they returned and achieved a lot. In 1988, they successfully completed two cases of pancreas transplantation for two diabetes patients. Thereafter, Professor Zhou Xiaosi, as the member of the
standing committee of the Chinese Medical Association, and the head of the Biliary Group, instructed doubles of Medical Masters and Medical Doctors to continue the research of human organ transplantation and made preparation for clinical organ transplantation. Doubles of articles were published in the first class periodicals as the results. Among these, the research on bypass tubes for liver transplantation was appraised as the top-ranking finding both abroad and domestic. In 1994, the director of the Department of General Surgery, Professor Zhang Tonglin, as the member of the Chinese Medical Association and tutor of the doctor's degree, when returned home after finishing the study of liver transplantation in the United States, began the research of liver transplantation on animals and made final preparation for clinical liver transplantation. At the same time, several doctors of the liver transplantation team went abroad, such as U.K., Italy, Japan, Australia, U.S.A., etc, for further study of clinical liver transplantation. Till 2000, everything was ready, under the direction of the former President Professor Hou Kuanyong and the Director Professor Zhang Tonglin, the clinical liver transplantation commenced in May, 2000. Thanks to the sufficient preparation and the backup of the mighty comprehensive strength of the Third Hospital Beijing University, 15 cases were successfully completed in the first 7 months without any peri-operational death. Kidney transplantation, Kidney-pancreas combined transplantation were launched subsequently. Organ transplantation became one of the routine operation in our hospital. Under the support of the President of the Medical College Beijing University, the vice President of the People's congress Council, the Academician Professor Han Qide, the Organ Transplantation Center was founded in October 2001 in the city of Beijing.