On February 13, 2026 the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program jointly developed by Shanghai Children's Medical Center (SCMC), affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (St. Jude) officially received accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education International (ACGME-I). This marks the first Pediatric Hematology/Oncology fellowship program in China developed in accordance with international standards to achieve ACGME-I accreditation.It also marks the alignment of China’s training system for Pediatric Oncology specialists with global benchmarks, ushering in a new stage of standardized and internationalized development.

Childhood cancers and severe hematological diseases are major illnesses threatening the life and health of children in China. It is estimated that approximately 30,000 to 40,000 new cases of malignant tumors are diagnosed annually among children and adolescents under the age of 19 in China. The diagnosis and treatment of childhood cancers feature multidisciplinary collaboration, imposing stringent requirements on the professional competency and comprehensive management capabilities ofFellows. Nevertheless, China’s training system for pediatric Hematology-Oncology Fellows is still in the refinement phase, lacking a unified national standardized training framework. Establishing a high-quality, structured specialist training system has therefore become a critical step toward enhancing the overall diagnostic and treatment capacity of pediatric oncology in China.

Both partners in this collaboration are top-tier institutions in the field of pediatric oncology diagnosis and treatment. As one of the National Children’s Medical Centers, Shanghai Children’s Medical Center is among the largest and longest-established Pediatric Hematology-Oncology diagnosis and treatment centers in China, boasting profound clinical experience in pediatric leukemia, solid tumors and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a world-leading institution dedicated to the research and treatment of childhood cancers, committed to advancing progress in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood cancers and other life-threatening diseases, and continuously improving global pediatric cancer care capacity through international cooperation. Notably, the partnership between the two institutions dates back to the early 1990s. Over the past three decades, they have built a long-term and stable cooperative relationship in clinical research, talent training and academic exchanges, laying a solid foundation for the launch and accreditation of this training program.

The development of this specialized training program for Pediatric Hematology-Oncology physicians has undergone years of systematic preparation. The two institutions initiated this program in 2019 and officially launched its construction in 2020. Centered on Shanghai Children’s Medical Center as the core training base, a systematic training framework has been developed with the goal of cultivating talents with an international vision, offering trainees opportunities for clinical observation and advanced study at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Designed strictly in line with ACGME-I standards and accreditation requirements from the outset, the program was refined and improved over years, with the formal accreditation application submitted in 2025 and finally approved in February 2026.

ACGME-I is the dedicated arm of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education responsible for graduate medical education accreditation outside the United States, and its accreditation represents a widely recognized benchmark of quality in international medical education. Obtaining this accreditation signifies that the training program has met global medical education standards in all dimensions, including curriculum system, clinical teaching, faculty development, trainee assessment and training management. It will also sustain the optimization and upgrading of training quality through ongoing peer review mechanisms.

Leveraging the platform advantages of the National Children’s Medical Center, Shanghai Children’s Medical Center will further deepen its collaboration with world-class medical institutions. Taking this accredited program as a benchmark, the center will continuously drive the high-quality development of pediatric oncology disciplines and the cultivation of high-level medical talents, steadily improve China’s capacity in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood cancers, and bring hope of cure to more children with cancer.