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Professor Francis KL Chan, Choh-Ming Li Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics in The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)’s Faculty of Medicine (CU Medicine), received the 15th Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Award from the Chinese Academy of Engineering for his distinguished achievements in and contribution to medical research. The biennial award is regarded as the most prestigious in Chinese engineering science and technology, and engineering management. Professor Chan is the only Hong Kong scholar in the field of medicine and health to receive the award this year.

Professor Chan is an internationally renowned gastroenterologist dedicated to clinical service, education and scientific research of the digestive system. His work has revolutionised the prevention of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug- (NSAID) and aspirin-related gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding. In recent years, he has focused on the translational research of gut microbiota. His experience has contributed to the transformation of Hong Kong into a biotechnology hub.

He is currently the Director of the Centre for Gut Microbiota Research at CU Medicine and the co-director of the Microbiota I-Center (MagIC), funded by the InnoHK initiative of the Hong Kong government’s Innovation and Technology Commission. MagIC is the first microbiota innovation centre in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

“I feel deeply honoured and humbled to receive this distinguished award from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, as a recognition of my work over the years. Currently, my team and I have been focusing on applications of the gut microbiome, to bring health and hope to our next generation. Scientific research is a long and lonely road with an unpredictable return on investment. The Hong Kong government has been devoted to further developing the city’s medical technology industry, benefiting stakeholders in the field with favourable policies and abundant resources. We shall continue to advance in our field to help transform Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology hub in Asia,” Professor Chan remarked.

Starting his research career close to 30 years ago, Professor Chan is the first in academic history to publish eight first-authored, investigator-initiated, original research articles in The New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet. He is also the first scholar in Asia to be profiled by The Lancet, in May 2007, underlining his excellence in clinical research. His ground-breaking research has generated over 860 full scientific articles in high-impact international journals, yielding an h-index of over 100. His research on the prevention of NSAID- and aspirin-related GI bleeding has led to major revisions to clinical practice guidelines in the US, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Using AI and confirmed by clinical trials, he and his research team have successfully developed a number of microbiome formulas, such as SIM01, to enhance immunity. His innovations have received several international innovation and entrepreneurship awards. 

The Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Award has been presented to Chinese engineering science and technology experts and scientists every two years since 1996 to commend their important contributions and outstanding achievements in the fields of engineering science and technology, and engineering management. This year, 41 awardees were selected in total.