Won-ju, Cheong, Hospital director
- College graduate, Gosin University 
- Master’s degree in Yonsei University’s Graduate School of Public Health
- Master’s degree in CHA University’s Institute of Alternative Medicine
- Director of Korea Association of Alternative Medicine
- Oriental doctor of U.S. and Canada
Director of 97.7B&H Stem Cell Treatment and Research Center (in active service)
A vice-president of Life Science Company STC (in active service)

When I first heard the name of the hospital, it seemed that the hospital’s name was different from the others.  Can you tell me more about the name of hospital, 97.7B&H? 
The number 97.7 means 97.7° degrees Fahrenheit, the most ideal temperature for maintaining a healthy life.  In B&H, B means Beauty and H means Health. This name was used with the wish that all people who use this hospital can become healthy and beautiful. 

What does stem cell mean?
Stem cell indicates undifferentiated 1st generation cell that can be differentiated into all cells. In other words, stem cell suggests that any cells in our body can be reproduced. When compared with general cells, the characteristics of stem cell lie in looking for a place to reproduce by itself.  Relevant studies are actively under way and the day will soon come to replace such diseases to be transplanted in livers, such as kidney transplant with stem cell treatment.

At which level do you think our stem cell technology is? 
Korea’s technology including us can be said to be world class. Since Korea’s technology is considered to be at the top, sometimes people come to Korea to learn it and other times, Korea exports excellent stem cells. The beauty treatment field related to stem cells in Korea could naturally hold technical skills after a prolonged period of research and clinical trials.  Korea became one of the largest countries in the world in Stem cell technology, especially in the field of surgical procedure. The current level of stem cells in Korea is a world away from the technical skills we had five or ten years ago.

Do you have special skills that you have uniquely? 
Our 97.7B&H Hospital is also the world’s best and the best stem cell-specialized hospital that holds the biggest number of stem cell treatment cases already in the world. We have more than 40 patients including internal and external patients based on unrivaled and unique technical skills from separation of stem cells from umbilical cord, washing, storage, to the application of the treatment. And the pluripotent stem cell (scientific name: STC-nEPS) to be announced soon in the academic world makes up for the disadvantages of general adult stem cells and develops advantages, reduces side effects, and can be utilized in more various ways, and thus unfailing treatment is possible. It was proven that it had no side effects, showed excellent safety, and could be applicable immediately to the treatment of diabetes. If this cell is applied to the field of medical treatment, it will set a new milestone in this field.

Can you tell me about the patient case(s) that you’ve ever healed through this stem cell treatment? 
Mostly, we have patients with incurable disease; chronic disease, etc. who come to our hospital. Among them, there are patients that come to mind, I remember an old man who had Parkinson's disease, an old woman whose brain function was damaged due to gas poisoning, patients who suffered from chronic kidney disease, and a young woman in her 20’s with autoimmune disease of alopecia universalis. This patient with alopecia universalis had suffered from this disease for 10 years, but her hair began to grow back after the stem cell treatment. I take a sort of pride from this healing process as a doctor. 

Many foreign patients are visiting Korea for stem cell treatment. Which countries are largely visiting us or what is the treatment or surgical procedure that they want to get? 
Many of the foreign patients visit us by the introduction of the patients who visited us for the first time to receive treatment and they have shown good results. 
They are mostly Chinese. They come to us with the help of Hallyu(‘The Korea Wave’) that have spread around the world. The other regions and/or countries include Europe, U.S., Middle East, Southeast Asia and Asia, and going even farther, Costa Rica. The biggest number is usually patients who receive surgical treatment for
anti-aging.

The biggest concern of middle-aged people seems to be the stress caused by skin aging. How can we prevent skin aging? 
Men and women of all ages are quite interested in skin health because the skin is shown directly to others. The most important thing in preventing skin aging is to make life enjoyable without getting stressed. Blocking ultraviolet rays that trigger skin aging with sunblock is also important.  If utilizing stem cells, it may have a positive impact on skin wrinkles and in skin tone improvement because the fibroblasts that synthesize collagen fiber and elastin fibers in dermal skin are activated by the stem cells. Management after procedure is also important. No matter how good your treatment are, the effects may drastically decrease if you are negligent in the post-management, for example, if you are exposed to ultraviolet rays that trigger skin aging too frequently or if you get stressed.

I heard that as methods to use stem cell without coming to hospital, there were customized stem cell culture medium cosmetics that had been developed. Can you tell me about this more? 
Customized stem cell culture medium cosmetics means making one’s own unique cosmetics in the world by culturing stem cells extracted from one’s fats and collecting data such as color, container, design, etc that customers want with the culture fluid as the major material. It is a concept cosmetic that one can make and use one’s own unique cosmetics in the world. Currently, the stem cell culture fluid is the most advanced and the most expensive raw materials for highly-priced cosmetics in the world and has excellent effects for wrinkle improvement at the clinical settings.

What is the future strategy and goals of this 97.7B&H hospital? 
STRI Life Science Laboratory and 97.7B&H Hospital have already held the technical skills as an advanced life science company in the world and furthermore, they will establish a foundation for taking the first step into the world’s top 10 companies by giving impetus to studies. Based on these technical skills, we are ready to become one of the world’s best incurable disease and antiaging-specialized hospital.