03/08/2026
🌏 A Congress to Remember: IOS 2026 Chengdu & 1st TICOM
From July 30 to August 1, 2026, the city of Chengdu — home of the giant panda and the cradle of Tianfu culture — welcomed nearly 400 of the world's foremost minds in obesity and metabolic medicine, from 30+ countries and regions joined in person, with 86285 people watched online globally. Together, we convened the 2nd International Obesity Society Congress (IOS 2026 Chengdu) & the 1st Tianfu International Congress on Obesity and Metabolism (TICOM).
As Director of the IOS - International Obesity Society, standing before this extraordinary assembly, I was reminded of why we founded this organization: because no single country, no single discipline, can alone turn the tide against the global metabolic crisis.
🤝 A New Era of Global Collaboration
Eight leading institutions — from The Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery Society to Macau's health economics and obesity societies, from IRCAD China to innovators in rehabilitation, medical devices, and nutrition biotechnology — came together to sign the IOS Global Collaboration Memorandum of Understanding. This is not a ceremonial gesture. It is a binding commitment to joint research, talent cultivation, and the translation of discovery into patient care across borders.
🏆 Honoring Excellence
We recognized the very best in our field:
• Prof. Ming-Hua Zheng — Excellence in Research Award
• Profs. Rui Tao & Ningli Yang — Distinguished Contribution Awards
• Ten outstanding early-career investigators — Top 10 Abstracts Awards
To each of you: your work lights the path forward.
🧬 The Science That Moved Us
Four visionary keynotes. Sixteen parallel sessions (23 sessions by sub speciality topics). From the operating room to the laboratory, from AI-powered weight management to the 21-year journey of LGR4 gene discovery, from endoscopic innovations like ESG and POSE 2.0 to the deeply human "A Date with Obesity" TED-style talks — every conversation advanced our shared mission.
👩⚕️👨⚕️ The Next Generation
We launched specialized training for young bariatric surgeons, established two new IOS Working Groups — on Integrated TCM-Western Medicine in Reproductive Endocrinology and on Body Contouring — and ignited conversations that will shape clinical guidelines for years to come.
💙 A Personal Note
Obesity is not vanity. It is not a personal failing. It is a global health emergency that touches billions. And it will only be defeated by the kind of collaboration, compassion, and scientific rigor that filled every hall of the Chengdu Hilton DoubleTree these past three days.
To every delegate, every sponsor, every volunteer, every member of the IOS family — thank you. Chengdu was not an ending. It was a launchpad.
Together, we move forward. Together, we heal the world. 🌏💪
Wah Yang, MD, Director, International Obesity Society (IOS)
