Wu Mengchao (1922-)is a native of Minqing, Fujian Province. He graduated from the Medical School of Shanghai Tongji University in 1949. Wu is an expert in hepatobiliary surgery. He is vice-president of the Association of Chinese Medical Science, vice-president of the Second Military Medical University and Head of the Institute of Hepatobiliary Surgery of PLA. He served as the dean at both the Orient Liver and Gallbladder Surgery Hospital and the Orient Liver and Gallbladder Surgery Research Institute at the No. 2 Surgeon University. Wu also has medical experience with the Chinese military. He was deputy director of the Medical Scientific Committee with the PLA and was awarded the title of model medical specialist by the Central Military Committee in 1996. He was elected as an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1991.

Regarded as a founder of liver and gallbladder surgery in China, Wu devised a new view of five-blade four-segment of Chinese liver and gallbladder anatomy in 1950s. In the 1960s, Prof-Wu Mengchao originated a new surgical method: intermittent interruption of the porta hepatic at normal temperature as well as hepatic artery ligation and embolization for unresectable liver cancer. In the 1970s, a general check-up was carried out in more than 180 thousand people for early \liver cancer. At the same period, three cases of liver transplantations were performed. In the 1980s, important surgical techniques of normothermic total hepatic vascular occlusion for liver resection and second- stage operation were successfully developed. The basic and clinic researches were extensively carried out in the immuno- and molecular pathology, oncogenes, suppressor genes, multidrug resistance genes, immuno-, bio-, targeting and gene therapy, ect.. Since 1989, the Institute was appointed the National Key Subject, National Open Laboratory and Mobile Postdoctoral Station. In 1990s, laparoscopic hepatic resection and hepatic artery ligation were performed successfully. He established a systematic, scientific, standardized and ripe setup of surgical treatment of liver cancer. A total of 2,900 more hepatectomies have been performed, which is the largest series in the world. The 5-year postoperative survival rates of liver cancer is 28.4% in general, and is 82.4% in liver cancer smaller than 3cm in diameter, which is the best result in the world. Hepatobiliary surgery of China has become a subject with highly academic influence and advanced level internationally. Up to now, more than 200 thesis and 12 monographs were published; and he has been conferred about 20 important awards by both state and PLA in recognition of his achievements, such as National Science Conference Award, All PLA Scientific Conference Award, State Science and Technology Progress Award, First Class and Second Class for twice, Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Award, and so on.