On March 25, 2025, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine Professor Barry J. Marshall, visited PUMCH to deliver a keynote lecture and engage in academic exchange. PUMCH Vice President Du Bin presented Professor Marshall with his appointment certificate as Distinguished Professor during a ceremony that attracted over one hundred clinical experts, researchers, and medical students.

Professor Marshall currently serves as Professor at the University of Western Australia and Director of the Marshall Centre, University of Western Australia. He also holds prestigious positions as an International Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and International Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. This formal appointment as Distinguished Professor at PUMCH marks the beginning of a collaborative partnership focused on cultivating high-level talent, advancing medical research innovation and medical translation—initiatives that will inject new momentum into the high-quality development of disciplines at the hospital.

▲Vice President Du Bin (left) presenting Professor Marshall (right) with his Distinguished Professor appointment certificate

In his lecture, Professor Marshall drew from his personal research journey to highlight the critical importance of curiosity-driven research. Professor Marshall mainly engages in research related to Helicobacter pylori. In 1983, he and Dr. Robin Warren proposed the hypothesis that "Helicobacter pylori causes gastric ulcers" and submitted their paper to an academic forum in Western Australia, but it was rejected. At that time, the mainstream view in academia was that "peptic ulcers are caused by emotional stress and gastric acid", and experts dismissed the possibility that bacteria could survive in the highly acidic stomach. In 1984, Marshall swallowed a culture fluid containing a large amount of Helicobacter pylori, testing it on himself, and successfully proved for the first time that Helicobacter pylori can indeed infect humans. The authoritative medical journal Lancet subsequently published their research paper, triggering worldwide interest in Helicobacter pylori research. In 2005, Professor Marshall and Dr. Robin Warren were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Throughout his talk, Professor Marshall emphasized the fundamental values that drive scientific progress: questioning established authority, adhering to evidence-based approaches, and maintaining the courage to explore uncharted territory. "The greatest obstacle to knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge," he noted, encouraging the medical community to encourage innovation and critical thinking while upholding scientific rigor.

Professor Marshall also shared his team's latest advances in gastric cancer mechanisms research, antibiotic resistance testing, and precision diagnostic technologies. He emphasized the importance of early Helicobacter pylori eradication in gastric cancer prevention and suggested that personalized precision treatment protocols would define the future of infectious disease management.

The lecture was followed by a dynamic Q&A session where Professor Marshall answered in detail questions about challenges in scientific innovation, pathways for translating research into clinical practice, and strategies for nurturing scientific literacy among young researchers.

Later, Professor Marshall's team joined Dr. Yang Aiming, Director of the Department of Gastroenterology at PUMCH, and his colleagues for case discussions. They examined two complex cases: a patient with mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma with concurrent Helicobacter pylori infection and another with colonic cap polyposis. After thorough discussion of medical histories, diagnostic findings, and treatment options, the international team reached consensus on management approaches. Both Professor Marshall's team and PUMCH medical staff expressed their commitment to continued collaboration in addressing complex digestive disorders. This international partnership will establish vital channels for knowledge exchange and technical support, ultimately bringing the benefits of medical advancement to a broader patient population.

Written by Gan Dingzhu and Chen Jiajing

Edited by Wu Yanyan and Wang Yao

Pictures courtesy of Du Yufu