Ronald MaProf. Hong Kong, China

Ronald MaProf.
Ronald Ma is a clinician-scientist and a specialist in Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes. He completed his medical training at the University of Cambridge, UK and trained in Internal Medicine in London, followed by endocrinology fellowship training in Hong Kong. He then pursued a research fellowship in diabetic complications at the Joslin Diabetes Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA. Dr Ma’s research focuses on the epidemiology and genetics of diabetes and its complications, gestational diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome, and the developmental origins of diabetes. He is currently leading a multi-disciplinary project team to leverage on the Hong Kong Diabetes Register and accompanying biobank to identify novel molecular markers for diabetic complications, and is the principal investigator of the Hong Kong Diabetes Biobank. He has also initiated several mother-offspring cohorts to examine the long-term effects of gestational diabetes and PCOS, and multi-omic studies to identify novel biomarkers. He is also leading local initiatives to enhance local biobanking capacity in Hong Kong and related research. He has published over 450 research articles in international peer-reviewed journals (>35,000 citations, H-index 79). He received the Croucher Senior Medical Research Fellowship (2020) to further his research on Precision Medicine in Diabetes, and the Xiaoren Pan Distinguished Research Award for Epidemiology of Diabetes in Asia from the Asian Association for the Study of Diabetes (AASD). Dr Ma plays an active role in diabetes advocacy. He is a Past President of the International Diabetes Epidemiology Group, a Past President of Diabetes Hongkong, and member of the Executive Board, the Asian Association for the Study of Diabetes (AASD). He has served as a Commissioner on the Lancet Commission on Diabetes, the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Pregnancy and NCD Committee, as well as council member of IADPSG. He has served as consultant for the WHO on childhood obesity, the International Diabetes Federation, as well as FIGO on NCD prevention. He serves on the Steering Committee for Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases for the Hong Kong Health Bureau. He led the workgroup on Type 1 Diabetes in Adults for the IDF Diabetes Atlas, and in an international initiative on Precision Medicine in Diabetes. He currently serves as editorial board member of PLoS Medicine, Diabetologia, Diabetes, Obesity Reviews, Journal of Diabetes Investigation and Maternal-Fetal Medicine.

21 MARCH

Time Session
08:30
10:00
[Symposium] Artificial Intelligence and Precision Medicine (2)
Precision Medicine in Endocrinology
Feng-Hsuan LiuTaiwan Moderator
Iris Isip-TanPhilippines Moderator AI applications and insulin managementArtificial intelligence is evolving from novel research concepts to practical clinical tools. This presentation will provide a broad overview of the current AI ecosystem, from automated insulin delivery (AID) systems to machine learning algorithms designed for glucose prediction and clinical decision support. The unique regional perspective will be addressed, exploring how diverse healthcare infrastructures and reimbursement models influence the adoption of AI innovations. The discussion will conclude by identifying key challenges in implementation, such as algorithmic equity and data security, to outline a framework for the future integration of AI into daily practice.
  • Sex-Specific Approaches in Precision Medicine: Advancing Endocrinology Care
    Shih-Li SuTaiwan Speaker Sex-Specific Approaches in Precision Medicine: Advancing Endocrinology CareSex differences are fundamental determinants of endocrine physiology and disease. Conventional approaches that treat men and women as biologically equivalent overlook variations in hormonal regulation, immune response, organ function, and pharmacologic metabolism. Precision medicine in endocrinology integrates these sex-specific biological and environmental factors to achieve individualized care. Emerging evidence shows that women are more prone to autoimmune thyroid disease, prolactinoma, and osteoporosis, largely due to estrogen-enhanced immune activity and X-chromosome dosage effects. Men, by contrast, experience higher rates of hypogonadism, visceral obesity, and aggressive endocrine tumors, reflecting androgen decline and single X-chromosome vulnerability. Hormonal effects, such as menopause-related bone loss, are often reversible, whereas chromosomal influences—such as those seen in Turner and Klinefelter syndromes—are irreversible and genetically determined. Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic disparities further highlight the need for sex-informed dosing. Women generally have higher CYP3A4 activity and altered drug binding via increased sex hormone–binding globulin. In Asian populations, genetic polymorphisms, including the high prevalence of BRAF^V600E^ mutations in papillary thyroid cancer and variable androgen receptor CAG repeats, demand region-specific precision strategies. Sex-specific precision endocrinology moves beyond a uniform model of care by recognizing biological sex as a key variable in disease risk and treatment response. Incorporating sex-stratified analyses, adjusted diagnostic thresholds, and personalized pharmacotherapy can enhance diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic safety. For Asia, integrating genetic and environmental diversity is essential to advance equitable, individualized endocrine care.
  • From the Bedside to the Digital World: Precision Medicine in Endocrinology with Al and ICT
    Miyuki KataiJapan Speaker From the Bedside to the Digital World: Precision Medicine in Endocrinology with Al and ICTPrecision medicine in endocrinology must account for biological variability, life-course hormonal transitions, and sociocultural determinants of health. However, in routine clinical practice, endocrine disorders are often detected only after prolonged symptomatic periods, particularly when symptoms are nonspecific or overlap with normal physiological transitions. Our work originates from bedside clinical challenges. In developing and operating a comprehensive women’s specialty clinic grounded in sex-specific medicine—representing an innovative clinical model in Japan—we evaluated more than 5,000 women. Among patients who presented to our clinic with a prior diagnosis of menopausal disorders, organic diseases were identified in 27%. Thyroid dysfunction accounted for approximately 15% of cases initially attributed to menopausal disorders. These findings suggest that menopausal diagnoses may contribute to delayed recognition of underlying diseases. Among conditions masked by such symptoms, endocrine disorders were frequently identified, likely because many endocrine diseases require additional targeted laboratory testing for definitive diagnosis. Within endocrine disorders, thyroid dysfunction was particularly prevalent in women. To address this unmet need, we developed the Women’s AI Symptom Evaluator (WaiSE), a digital platform designed to visualize multidimensional symptom patterns using AI-assisted structured questionnaires. WaiSE was developed to support detection of a broad spectrum of underrecognized conditions in women, including endocrine disorders such as thyroid disease. Importantly, these digital tools help women recognize and articulate complex autonomic symptom patterns commonly experienced during menopausal transitions, thereby enabling clinicians to better interpret symptom presentations and facilitating earlier detection of endocrine disorders. The platform is supported by a gender-specific clinical database derived from over 5,000 patients and more than 60,000 consultations, enabling symptom–diagnosis correlation modeling and development of sex-informed diagnostic algorithms. Building upon this clinical and digital foundation, we have recently initiated an integrated endocrine screening strategy through collaboration with the AI-based Thyroid Screening (AITS) platform. We collaborated with Cosmic Corporation, the developer of the AI-based Thyroid Screening (AITS) system. AITS is an AI-based screening system that analyzes routine blood test results obtained in general screening programs, including health checkups, to estimate the likelihood of thyroid dysfunction. The integrated WaiSE–AITS system combines patient-reported symptom assessment through WaiSE with objective clinical indicators derived from AITS to assist in identifying individuals who may require additional thyroid function testing. The integrated system is being developed with the aim of future regulatory approval as Software as a Medical Device (SaMD). This integrated platform can be utilized in clinical practice settings as well as in health screening programs and occupational health settings, demonstrating feasibility in capturing real-world symptom data beyond hospital-centered care. The combined system is designed as a physician-supervised clinical decision-support tool intended to assist healthcare professionals in identifying patients who may benefit from further thyroid evaluation, while maintaining physician responsibility for final diagnostic decisions. This presentation highlights the clinical background, digital innovation process, and emerging collaborative screening strategies, demonstrating how bedside endocrinology can evolve into digitally supported precision care incorporating a life-course approach for women. Acknowledgements:This research was supported by AMED (Grant Number: JP21gk0210024h9903) and by grants from METI, Japan.
  • Precision Medicine in Diabetes: Perspectives from Asia
    Ronald MaHong Kong, China Speaker Precision Medicine in Diabetes: Perspectives from AsiaPrecision Medicine in Diabetes: Perspectives from Asia Abstract Diabetes is traditionally classified into type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes as the main forms of diabetes. However, there is increasing recognition that there is significant hidden heterogeneity within diabetes. Resolving this heterogeneity of diabetes can help facilitate personalized treatment and precision medicine in diabetes. For example, identification of specific monogenic forms of diabetes may facilitate tailored choices of diabetes medications. Precision diagnosis also includes the use of biomarkers to correctly identify adults presenting with autoimmune diabetes for appropriate treatment. Recent advances have included the use of clinical characteristics to empower subtyping of adult-onset diabetes through different clustering strategies. Regardless of the approach of subclassification, the essence of diabetes subtyping is to differentiate between individuals with diabetes due to different underlying pathophysiological defects, and hence have different prognosis towards complications or response to treatment. Recent advances in precision prognostics have also highlighted strategies that can identify high-risk individuals for more intensive treatment. An international consortium initiated by the American Diabetes Association and European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) has reviewed the landscape for precision medicine in diabetes to map our current understanding, as well as outline future directions. The ability to resolve the heterogeneity in diabetes, and thereby provide treatment that is best tailored to the underlying pathophysiology, provides exciting opportunities to realize precision medicine in diabetes towards better patient outcomes. References 1. Leslie RD, Ma RCW, Franks PW, Nadeau KJ, Pearson ER, Redondo MJ. Understanding diabetes heterogeneity: key steps towards precision medicine in diabetes. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2023 Nov;11(11):848-860. 2. Tobias D, Merino J et al, Second International Consensus report on gaps and opportunities for the clinical translation of precision diabetes medicine. Nature Medicine 2023; 29: 2438-2457. Challenging Cases in EndocrinologyIn this meet the professor session, we will use 4-5 case scenarios to illustrate diagnostic challenges around clinical endocrinology and diabetes and discuss management strategies.
201DE

22 MARCH

Time Session
13:30
14:00
Meet the Professor 7
Case Challenges
Chih-Yuan WangTaiwan Moderator 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.
  • Challenging Cases in Endocrinology
    Ronald MaHong Kong, China Speaker Precision Medicine in Diabetes: Perspectives from AsiaPrecision Medicine in Diabetes: Perspectives from Asia Abstract Diabetes is traditionally classified into type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes as the main forms of diabetes. However, there is increasing recognition that there is significant hidden heterogeneity within diabetes. Resolving this heterogeneity of diabetes can help facilitate personalized treatment and precision medicine in diabetes. For example, identification of specific monogenic forms of diabetes may facilitate tailored choices of diabetes medications. Precision diagnosis also includes the use of biomarkers to correctly identify adults presenting with autoimmune diabetes for appropriate treatment. Recent advances have included the use of clinical characteristics to empower subtyping of adult-onset diabetes through different clustering strategies. Regardless of the approach of subclassification, the essence of diabetes subtyping is to differentiate between individuals with diabetes due to different underlying pathophysiological defects, and hence have different prognosis towards complications or response to treatment. Recent advances in precision prognostics have also highlighted strategies that can identify high-risk individuals for more intensive treatment. An international consortium initiated by the American Diabetes Association and European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) has reviewed the landscape for precision medicine in diabetes to map our current understanding, as well as outline future directions. The ability to resolve the heterogeneity in diabetes, and thereby provide treatment that is best tailored to the underlying pathophysiology, provides exciting opportunities to realize precision medicine in diabetes towards better patient outcomes. References 1. Leslie RD, Ma RCW, Franks PW, Nadeau KJ, Pearson ER, Redondo MJ. Understanding diabetes heterogeneity: key steps towards precision medicine in diabetes. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2023 Nov;11(11):848-860. 2. Tobias D, Merino J et al, Second International Consensus report on gaps and opportunities for the clinical translation of precision diabetes medicine. Nature Medicine 2023; 29: 2438-2457. Challenging Cases in EndocrinologyIn this meet the professor session, we will use 4-5 case scenarios to illustrate diagnostic challenges around clinical endocrinology and diabetes and discuss management strategies.
201BC