An employee’s recovery from an esophageal disease through minimally invasive surgery — A “True to Life” Story

December 15, 2025

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TOKYO, December 15, 2024 – Olympus Corporation (Olympus) has released the latest installment of its "True to Life Stories," featuring stories of how Olympus is contributing to “making people's lives healthier, safer and more fulfilling” through advanced medical technologies and solutions. The latest story highlights Chao Gao, an employee of Olympus Asia Pacific Business Management Services (Dalian) Co., Ltd., a group company of Olympus in Dalian, China.

For years, Chao suffered from a rare esophageal disorder that made swallowing painful. Even drinking water was difficult. But in his 30s, he underwent a minimally invasive endoscopic surgery and returned to a normal life. Today, he is not only back at work but also pursuing his long-held dream of learning hip-hop dance. “When I woke up after the surgery, I decided to live my life with health as my top priority,” says Chao. We interviewed him about his surgical experience and shared his story in the article.

This story has also been shared on the official Olympus website, as well as on LinkedIn and X .

Olympus launched the global brand message "True to Life" in December 2021, and has been implementing various initiatives to raise its awareness as a global MedTech company and brand. As part of these initiatives, the company regularly publishes "True to Life Stories" in the form of videos and articles. To view the past stories, click the link below.
https://www.olympus-global.com/company/truetolife/stories/?page=company