The growth of thoracic surgery in China was much more difficult than in many industrialized countries over the first five decades because of the ever-changing political and harsh socioeconomic conditions. The struggle to establish this specialty in a developing country with more than one fifth of the world population was certainly one of the most crucial challenges in the last century. The book is the first ever published in the English language to provide a comprehensive review of the history of cardiothoracic surgery in China. It highlights the remarkable surgical heritage of which the younger generation of Chinese surgeons should be proud. A unique feature of this volume is that all contributors are acknowledged experts and leaders in the field of cardiothoracic surgery, both nationally and internationally. Many of the photographs have never been published before.