Gastrointestinal Surgery is one of the key departments of Union Hospital, which is now the authorization center for Doctor's and Master's degree of Gastrointestinal Surgery as well as postdoctoral mobile station, national key disciplines and specialties, laparoscopic and endoscopic diagnosis and treatment technology training base of National Health Commission, Clinical Research Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery of Hubei Province. With the first-class talents, the most advanced clinical equipment and scientifically designed education and training system, the department enjoys high reputation in domestic surgical field. Each year the department has over 7,900 hospitalized patients and over 67,000 outpatients , more than 4,900 cases of surgeries. It provides medical services for all kinds of gastrointestinal diseases, focusing on minimally invasive techniques (80% of surgeries are minimally invasive).

There are 240 beds in the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery. There are 14 chief physicians, including 7 professors, 4 supervisors of doctorate candidates, 17 associate chief physicians, including 14 supervisors of master's candidates, and 118 nursing staff, including 7 chief nurses.

In terms of international academic exchanges, Professor Kaixiong Tao, as the director of Gastrointestinal Surgery Department has made academic reports and live surgical demonstrations in national academic conferences for many times. In the past ten years, the department has hosted Minimally Invasive Surgery Academic Conferences, with more than 1,000 participants each time. The department has been conducting academic exchanges with MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Michigan Cancer Center, Digestive Disease Center of Heidelberg University, Swansea University Cancer Center, and Surgical Department of Kanazawa Medical University for a long time, and has sent scholars for visiting and exchange. In the past five years, it has undertaken more than 10 cases of National Natural Science Foundation Projects. More than 150 papers have been published, including more than 50 SCI indexed papers, with the highest impact factor of more than 20.

Under the protracted and unremitting efforts of three generations led by Professor Daoda Chen, Professor Guobin Wang and Professor Kaixiong Tao, the diagnosing and treatment technology in the department has processed the leading position and features in the areas including:

• Standard diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal tumors: benign and malignant tumors of the stomach, duodenum, small intestine and colorectum, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, etc.

• Radical minimally invasive surgical treatment of colon cancer, rectal cancer and anal canal cancer,

• Obesity with metabolic diseases (such as diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc.)

• Inguinal hernia, abdominal wall hernia, incisional hernia, hiatal hernia, etc.

• Surgical treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, Chronic abdominal pain, intestinal obstruction, intestinal leakage, complex intestinal fistula, etc.

• Peritoneal thermal perfusion for abdominal pelvic implantation, peritoneal metastatic tumor, malignant mesothelioma, abdominal myxoma and intractable ascites,

• Digestive diseases include early gastrointestinal tumors and endoscopic treatment of acute intestinal obstruction.