Dong Yuyu Family Statement on Yuyu’s Urgent Medical Condition
An urgent appeal for help
Yuyu was hospitalized on April 27 due to heart discomfort. Prior tests at the prison revealed no abnormality, but later examinations at the prison-affiliated hospital in Tianjin revealed arrhythmia, including premature atrial contractions and premature ventricular contractions.
The main reason for the discomfort, according to Yuyu, is the long hours of forced hard labor in Tianjin’s Chaobai Prison and the deprivation of proper rest due to his refusal to confess to his charges. Yuyu told family members that his heart conditions improved with rest at the hospital, but any thought of going back to Chaobai Prison brought back the heart symptoms.
On April 29, a CT scan revealed a sizable tumor (3.3 x 2.2 cm ground-glass opacity mass) in Yuyu’s lower left lung. An X-ray back in November 2025 revealed no abnormalities in his lungs.
On May 7, during a family visitation to the prison-affiliated hospital, the doctors claimed that subsequent contrast-enhanced CT scans were inconclusive and did not provide a diagnosis. We believe this is due to the hospital’s lack of experience and expertise in treating cancer and inadequate facilities.
Many features of the tumor from the scan already suggest that it is highly probable that the tumor is malignant. Such undue delays in diagnosis will almost certainly lead to delays in treatment.
In the current facility, proper care is impossible to obtain. Yuyu told family members that he observed in the prison-affiliated hospital that cancer patients only receive non-personalized chemotherapy, with some inmates suffering and conditions deteriorating.
Although medical parole is a possibility in China, the “national security” nature of Yuyu’s false charges will make medical parole almost impossible.
Everyone who worked on Yuyu’s case has reason to know, from those who arrested and interrogated him to those who prosecuted him and sentenced him, that Yuyu is innocent and never endangered China’s national security because there is nothing in the facts, evidence, and reasoning of Yuyu’s case that supports the false charges. Once again, as our previous statements have made clear, the whole case against Yuyu is a complete sham.
Yet Yuyu is now effectively facing a death sentence.
Right now, it is clear to us that it is impossible for Yuyu to get the medical care his urgent conditions demand if he remains in the current facility. That is why we call on the international community to speak up for Yuyu, just as Yuyu has tirelessly spoken up for the voiceless throughout his 35-year career as a journalist, so Yuyu can get the treatment and justice he deserves.
We are grateful for the continuous support from press organizations and governments. The latest example is a Congressional Resolution for this year’s World Press Freedom Day. The resolution highlighted Yuyu’s case, along with those of Jimmy Lai and Ilham Tohti.
With President Trump’s upcoming visit to China, we hope the U.S. government, as a long-time champion of press freedom and human rights, can express concern about Yuyu’s condition and raise the possibility of releasing Yuyu on humanitarian grounds at its high-level meetings with President Xi and other Chinese officials. As Jimmy Lai is the most senior press freedom advocate imprisoned in Hong Kong, Yuyu is the most senior journalist imprisoned in Mainland China. We believe it is in the interest of all parties to have Yuyu released on humanitarian grounds. This is our last chance to advocate for Yuyu’s freedom before his health irreversibly deteriorates.