Alice KongProf. Hong Kong, China

Alice KongProf.
Dr. Kong is Professor in the Department of Medicine and Therapeutics at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Honorary Consultant at the Prince of Wales Hospital, Hong Kong. Dr. Kong graduated from The Chinese University of Hong Kong and completed her training in General Medicine and Endocrinology at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Hong Kong. She had her overseas training as postdoctoral fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Robert Henry at the Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine at University of California, San Diego, United States between 1998 and 1999. She became a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine in 2000, with accreditation in Advanced Internal Medicine, Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. She is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, Glasgow, Edinburgh and London. She is the chairperson of Specialty Board in Advanced Internal Medicine, Hong Kong College of Physicians between 2017 and 2021. Dr. Kong’s research interests are obesity and diabetes with focuses on epidemiological studies and clinical trials related to lifestyle factors, technology and complications in adults and adolescents. Dr. Kong is the member of Nominating Committee for President, World Obesity Federation. She is a member of steering committees of multinational studies and advisory boards of Hong Kong Government and international agencies including the Global Advisory Group of World Obesity Day. She is the Editor in Chief of Primary Care Diabetes, Managing Editor of Obesity Reviews, Editorial Board Member of Diabetes Care, Section Editor of Current Diabetes Reports, and International Associate Editor of Diabetes Technology and Therapeutics. Dr. Kong is dedicated to teaching and won the Faculty Education Award in 2022. She has presented at numerous local, regional and international meetings and has published over 360 articles in international peer-reviewed journals.

20 MARCH

Time Session
13:10
13:40
Meet the Professor 2
Obesity
Edy KorneliusTaiwan Moderator Anxiety in Patients with Thyroid Nodules: What Clinicians Need to KnowThyroid nodules are commonly encountered in endocrine practice, and while the majority are benign, the diagnostic and surveillance process often imposes a substantial psychological burden on patients. Anxiety related to fear of malignancy, uncertainty surrounding ultrasonographic findings, fine-needle aspiration results, and long-term follow-up is frequently underestimated and insufficiently addressed in routine clinical care. Emerging evidence suggests that anxiety in patients with thyroid nodules may persist even after reassurance of benign disease and can significantly affect quality of life, healthcare utilization, and decision-making preferences. Cancer-related worry is often disproportionate to the actual risk of malignancy and may be exacerbated by repeated imaging, indeterminate cytology, ambiguous terminology, and lack of clear follow-up strategies. Heightened anxiety has been associated with increased demand for diagnostic interventions and preference for aggressive management, potentially leading to overtreatment. This presentation reviews current evidence on the prevalence, determinants, and clinical consequences of anxiety among patients with thyroid nodules, integrating published literature with real-world clinical experience. Practical approaches for identifying psychological distress in outpatient settings and strategies for improving communication and expectation management will be discussed. Recognizing and addressing anxiety as an integral component of thyroid nodule care is essential for delivering holistic, patient-centred, and value-based endocrinology.
  • Obesity: What Clinicians Should Know
    Alice KongHong Kong, China Speaker Obesity: What Clinicians Should KnowRapid changes in technology, human behavior and lifestyle over the past few decades have resulted in a dramatic increase in the prevalence of obesity worldwide. Besides social stigmata and psychological consequences, obesity is associated with escalated risks of type 2 diabetes, coined the term "Diabesity", hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnoea, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), polycystic ovarian syndrome, cancers, cardiovascular diseases and increased mortality. Body mass index (BMI) is a commonly adopted tool to identify people with obesity. Clinicians should note that the cutoff points of BMI for clinical actions are different between people with obesity from the East and the West, as well as the limitations of BMI in diagnosing obesity. Recently, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Also, people with clinical obesity have many unmet needs requiring personalized treatment regimens, intensive counselling and emotional support. The 5 A's framework including Ask, Assess, Advise, Agree and Assist, provide a patient-centred approach to promote lasting behavioral change in obesity management. In addition to lifestyle modifications and behavioral changes, pharmacological agents for weight reduction, bariatric and metabolic surgeries are therapeutic options requiring careful selections for the appropriate patients with adequate counselling of the risks and benefits. Through case sharing approach, the use of weight reducing drugs and surgical strategies for people with preclinical and clinical obesity will be discussed in this session. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R). Obesity Management: What's New?Obesity is a global health hazard with rising prevalence in most parts of the world. Weight reduction by lifestyle modification remains the cornerstone in the prevention and treatment of obesity. However, weight management by lifestyle therapy alone is difficult to sustain in many obese individuals with rebound of body weight being observed as a common phenomenon. Given the invasiveness of bariatric and metabolic surgeries which are not accepted by many people with obesity, the use of pharmacological agents in weight management is increasingly popular. In 2025, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Among the various obesity complications, diabetes is well recognized to be closely related to obesity, with the term 'Diabesity' coined to show the strong link between these two important modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In recent decades, many new generation anti-diabetic drugs are developed and found to have weight reducing properties. Looking ahead, more new drugs are in the pipeline of clinical trials, and the results may eventually change the landscape of obesity management. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R).
201BC

21 MARCH

Time Session
13:30
15:00
[Symposium] Obesity
New Era in Weight Management
Shih-TeTuTaiwan Moderator
  • Brain Remodeling of Appetite Centers in Obesity - Results from Murine Omics Studies and Human Brain Imaging
    Tomohiro TanakaJapan Speaker Brain Remodeling of Appetite Centers in Obesity - Results from Murine Omics Studies and Human Brain ImagingBody weight is regulated by functional interplay between multiple organs, among which the hypothalamus plays a critical role through its modulatory functions on energy intake and expenditure. In early 1900s, professors Joseph Babinski and Alfred Frolich reported a case of acquired hypothalamic obesity, whose obesity was secondary to hypothalamic damage by brain tumor. The case provides the first evidence that the hypothalamus plays a key role in the maintenance of body weight in humans. In the 1970s and 1980s, experimental injury or electrical stimulation of the hypothalamic nuclei in rodents further led to an elucidation of its vital role in body weight regulation. Mechanistic insight has been addressed when the discovery of leptin followed by an elucidation of anorexigenic effect of GLP-1 has cast limelight on the endocrinologic aspect of body weight regulation. In fact, more than a dozen genetic forms of obesity has been reported, each of which is caused by mutations of a single gene with indispensable functions within leptin-hypothalamus axis. However, in routine clinical practice, tumors or genetic abnormalities in the hypothalamus are rarely observed in patients with obesity disease. The question, then, is whether the hypothalamus is functioning normally in such patients with primary obesity disease? In 2012, professor Joshua Thaler and colleagues reported that mice fed a high-fat diet exhibit early activation and proliferation of microglia and astrocytes within the hypothalamus - histologic changes suggestive of "hypothalamic inflammation". Subsequent pharmacologic and knockout mouse studies have demonstrated that this hypothalamic inflammation is not merely a result but a critical cause of obesity. We have studied the molecular landscape and its alterations during the development or the improvement of the obesity disease. Methodologically, our research involves transcriptomic and lipidomic analyses of hypothalamic nuclei in mice, with the aim of elucidating the molecular basis of hypothalamic remodeling observed in obese animal models. We have identified obesity-induced biochemical changes in the hypothalamus, such as inflammation-related transcriptome and region-specific accumulation of arachidonic acid esters. More clinically, we are investigating a potential reverse remodeling of the hypothalamus during weight loss in mouse models. Of note, in human subjects with obesity disease, reversible hypothalamic inflammation has been demonstrated using T2 relaxation time measurements in MRI studies. As such, hypothalamic inflammation, a common feature of hypothalamic pathology in rodents and humans, is attracting more attention as a focus of obesity research. In this session, I would like to discuss more of the status quo and future perspectives of the neuropathologic basis of the obesity disease.
  • Obesity Management: What's New?
    Alice KongHong Kong, China Speaker Obesity: What Clinicians Should KnowRapid changes in technology, human behavior and lifestyle over the past few decades have resulted in a dramatic increase in the prevalence of obesity worldwide. Besides social stigmata and psychological consequences, obesity is associated with escalated risks of type 2 diabetes, coined the term "Diabesity", hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnoea, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), polycystic ovarian syndrome, cancers, cardiovascular diseases and increased mortality. Body mass index (BMI) is a commonly adopted tool to identify people with obesity. Clinicians should note that the cutoff points of BMI for clinical actions are different between people with obesity from the East and the West, as well as the limitations of BMI in diagnosing obesity. Recently, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Also, people with clinical obesity have many unmet needs requiring personalized treatment regimens, intensive counselling and emotional support. The 5 A's framework including Ask, Assess, Advise, Agree and Assist, provide a patient-centred approach to promote lasting behavioral change in obesity management. In addition to lifestyle modifications and behavioral changes, pharmacological agents for weight reduction, bariatric and metabolic surgeries are therapeutic options requiring careful selections for the appropriate patients with adequate counselling of the risks and benefits. Through case sharing approach, the use of weight reducing drugs and surgical strategies for people with preclinical and clinical obesity will be discussed in this session. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R). Obesity Management: What's New?Obesity is a global health hazard with rising prevalence in most parts of the world. Weight reduction by lifestyle modification remains the cornerstone in the prevention and treatment of obesity. However, weight management by lifestyle therapy alone is difficult to sustain in many obese individuals with rebound of body weight being observed as a common phenomenon. Given the invasiveness of bariatric and metabolic surgeries which are not accepted by many people with obesity, the use of pharmacological agents in weight management is increasingly popular. In 2025, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Among the various obesity complications, diabetes is well recognized to be closely related to obesity, with the term 'Diabesity' coined to show the strong link between these two important modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In recent decades, many new generation anti-diabetic drugs are developed and found to have weight reducing properties. Looking ahead, more new drugs are in the pipeline of clinical trials, and the results may eventually change the landscape of obesity management. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R).
  • The Hidden Barrier: Understanding and Overcoming Weight Bias
    Hai-Hua ChuangTaiwan Speaker The Hidden Barrier: Understanding and Overcoming Weight Bias
3F Banquet Hall
15:10
15:50
Plenary 5
Alice KongHong Kong, China Moderator Obesity: What Clinicians Should KnowRapid changes in technology, human behavior and lifestyle over the past few decades have resulted in a dramatic increase in the prevalence of obesity worldwide. Besides social stigmata and psychological consequences, obesity is associated with escalated risks of type 2 diabetes, coined the term "Diabesity", hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnoea, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), polycystic ovarian syndrome, cancers, cardiovascular diseases and increased mortality. Body mass index (BMI) is a commonly adopted tool to identify people with obesity. Clinicians should note that the cutoff points of BMI for clinical actions are different between people with obesity from the East and the West, as well as the limitations of BMI in diagnosing obesity. Recently, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Also, people with clinical obesity have many unmet needs requiring personalized treatment regimens, intensive counselling and emotional support. The 5 A's framework including Ask, Assess, Advise, Agree and Assist, provide a patient-centred approach to promote lasting behavioral change in obesity management. In addition to lifestyle modifications and behavioral changes, pharmacological agents for weight reduction, bariatric and metabolic surgeries are therapeutic options requiring careful selections for the appropriate patients with adequate counselling of the risks and benefits. Through case sharing approach, the use of weight reducing drugs and surgical strategies for people with preclinical and clinical obesity will be discussed in this session. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R). Obesity Management: What's New?Obesity is a global health hazard with rising prevalence in most parts of the world. Weight reduction by lifestyle modification remains the cornerstone in the prevention and treatment of obesity. However, weight management by lifestyle therapy alone is difficult to sustain in many obese individuals with rebound of body weight being observed as a common phenomenon. Given the invasiveness of bariatric and metabolic surgeries which are not accepted by many people with obesity, the use of pharmacological agents in weight management is increasingly popular. In 2025, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Among the various obesity complications, diabetes is well recognized to be closely related to obesity, with the term 'Diabesity' coined to show the strong link between these two important modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In recent decades, many new generation anti-diabetic drugs are developed and found to have weight reducing properties. Looking ahead, more new drugs are in the pipeline of clinical trials, and the results may eventually change the landscape of obesity management. Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R).
  • Obesity 2026 Update
    Chih-Yuan WangTaiwan Speaker Obesity 2026 updateObesity remains one of the most critical and rapidly evolving global health challenges entering 2026, characterized by persistently rising prevalence, expanding clinical consequences, and profound societal and economic impacts. Over the past three decades, the prevalence of overweight and obesity has more than doubled among adults and increased nearly threefold among children and adolescents worldwide, driven by complex interactions between genetic susceptibility, obesogenic environments, sedentary lifestyles, dietary transitions toward energy-dense ultra-processed foods, and broader socio-economic determinants. Projections indicate that, if current trends continue, more than half of the global adult population and a substantial proportion of children will be living with obesity within the next two decades, with particularly rapid increases occurring in low- and middle-income countries undergoing nutritional and urban transitions. This epidemiologic shift has translated into a marked escalation in obesity-related non-communicable diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, osteoarthritis, and several obesity-associated malignancies, positioning excess adiposity as a leading contributor to global morbidity, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years. Alongside the growing disease burden, the conceptual framework of obesity has undergone important refinement. While body mass index remains a pragmatic population-level screening tool, its limitations in capturing adiposity distribution and metabolic risk have prompted international efforts to redefine obesity as a chronic, relapsing disease characterized by excess or dysfunctional adipose tissue with heterogeneous clinical expression. Emerging diagnostic paradigms increasingly emphasize waist-based measures, ectopic fat accumulation, and the presence of obesity-related complications, distinguishing pre-clinical obesity from clinically manifest disease and enabling more precise risk stratification and individualized management. Therapeutically, the obesity landscape has been transformed by advances in incretin-based pharmacotherapy, particularly glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and dual or multi-agonist agents, which have demonstrated unprecedented and sustained weight reduction alongside meaningful improvements in cardiometabolic outcomes. The recent development of effective oral formulations further expands treatment accessibility and has the potential to improve long-term adherence, although challenges related to cost, equity, and health-system implementation remain substantial. Importantly, pharmacotherapy alone is insufficient to address the obesity epidemic, and contemporary management strategies emphasize multimodal, life-course approaches integrating nutritional therapy, physical activity promotion, behavioral and psychological interventions, digital health technologies, and, when appropriate, metabolic and bariatric surgery, tailored to individual risk profiles and comorbidity burdens. At the population level, global policy initiatives increasingly recognize that obesity is not solely an individual responsibility but a systems-driven condition requiring coordinated action across healthcare, education, food systems, urban planning, and regulatory environments to create supportive contexts for healthy living. Concurrently, ongoing research continues to elucidate the complex pathophysiology of obesity, including the roles of genetics, epigenetics, gut microbiota, neuroendocrine regulation, and adipose tissue inflammation, while implementation science seeks to bridge gaps between evidence and real-world practice. Collectively, the 2026 obesity update portrays a paradoxical landscape of escalating global burden alongside unprecedented scientific and therapeutic progress, underscoring that meaningful and sustainable impact will depend on integrating biomedical innovation with structural policy reform, equitable access to care, and sustained public health commitment to reverse current trajectories and improve outcomes across the lifespan.Long-Term Changes of Urinary Exosomal Peptide Levels after Thyroidectomy in Patients with Thyroid Cancer: A Prospective Observational StudyIn this prospective observational study, we investigated whether longitudinal changes in urinary exosomal peptide profiles after thyroidectomy could predict recurrence risk in patients with papillary thyroid cancer, a disease with reported recurrence rates of up to 30%. Adults older than 20 years with newly diagnosed papillary thyroid cancer who had undergone thyroidectomy were enrolled, and urine samples were collected at 12 months after study entry and again one year later for exosomal peptide identification and comparison. Seventy patients were included and stratified according to the interval between surgery and enrollment (<5 years, 5–10 years, and >10 years). During the two-year follow-up after enrollment, no recurrences were observed. Across groups and time intervals, there were no significant differences in serum protein levels or urinary exosomal peptide concentrations, and established high-risk clinical factors showed only weak correlations with these biomarkers. Collectively, these findings delineate the long-term basal fluctuation ranges of serum proteins and urinary exosomal peptides in post-thyroidectomy thyroid cancer survivors, suggesting that biomarker levels remaining within these ranges may be indicative of a lower long-term risk of recurrence in high-risk patients following thyroidectomy.
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