Shanghai, January— A 3-year-old girl named Maidi, born with congenital biliary atresia, has successfully undergone a liver transplant in Shanghai, China. The surgery was led by Dr. Yang Yongkang, a Malaysian-born physician who has become the first foreign doctor to obtain a Chinese medical license.

Dr. Yang’s role in the operation has drawn widespread attention.

During a video call, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim personally introduced Dr. Yang as Maidi’s assisting surgeon, noting that he was originally from Malaysia and is currently living and working in China.

“I want to tell the Malaysian people that Maidi’s recovery is progressing very well,” Anwar said. “The chief surgeon who led her operation is a doctor from Malaysia.”

He added humorously, pointing to Dr. Yang on screen:

“These hands are the ones that helped save Maidi. We are already talking with him — if he is willing to return to Malaysia, he could come back as early as tomorrow.”

Dr. Yang smiled and shook hands with Anwar during the call.

Later the transplant procedure was completed successfully. Her recovery has been described as positive, and she is expected to return to Malaysia on July 8.

Prime Minister Anwar later traveled to Shanghai in person to visit Maidi and observe her post-operative recovery.

        About Dr. Yang Yongkang

Originally from Johor, Malaysia, Dr. Yang is also the first foreign national to obtain a Chinese medical license. He has practiced medicine in Shanghai for over a decade.

According to Hong Kong-based Wen Wei Po, Dr. Yang decided to pursue a medical career at a young age after witnessing his grandfather suffer from severe illness. He was born in 1977 into a Malaysian Chinese family and entered medical school at a Malaysian university in 1997.

After completing his undergraduate studies in 2001, regulatory restrictions initially prevented him from practicing medicine. Rather than giving up, Dr. Yang sought opportunities abroad.

He eventually chose to study in China, enrolling at Tianjin Medical University, where he retrained for five years in clinical medicine. In March 2014, with approval from China’s health authorities, Dr. Yang became the first foreign doctor officially registered to practice medicine in China.

In September 2020, he was admitted to a direct-track doctoral program and earned his PhD in 2023. He then officially joined the liver surgery team at Shanghai Renji Hospital.

Since first coming to China in 2001, Dr. Yang has lived in the country for 23 years, including 18 years in Shanghai.