China's top health authority on Thursday announced an investigation into a series of public controversies triggered by allegations of extramarital affairs involving Xiao Fei, a former senior doctor at a renowned hospital in Beijing.

The investigation will also examine whether there were any irregularities in the academic and work history of Dong Xiying, who used to be a resident physician in the hospital and one of Xiao's extramarital partners.

A spokesperson for the National Health Commission said in a release that the commission has noticed the public attention surrounding allegations against Xiao from the China-Japan Friendship Hospital.

It would work with relevant parties to conduct a thorough investigation into the matters involving Xiao, Dong and related institutions, the spokesperson said, stressing that it will uphold truth, objectiveness and fairness.

The commission pledged to deal with any identified violations of laws and regulations seriously and lawfully.

Xiao was an associate chief physician in the thoracic surgery department at China-Japan Friendship Hospital. His wife accused him of having affairs with four individuals, including nurses and doctors, and of leaving the operating room during a surgery for 40 minutes.

On Sunday, the hospital issued a statement confirming the basic facts of the allegations and announced that Xiao had been expelled from the Communist Party of China and dismissed from his position.

Since last week, a document of formal accusations filed by Xiao's wife, surnamed Gu, has widely circulated on Chinese social media. The document alleges that Xiao had affairs with four individuals over five years, resulting in multiple pregnancies and abortions.

The allegations have raised widespread public doubts about Dong's educational and professional background, as the document alleged that Xiao improperly arranged for Dong to receive standardized training in the thoracic surgery department.

According to public information, Dong graduated in 2023 from a pilot program at Peking Union Medical College with a Doctor of Medicine degree. The program admits non-medical students from the top 50 universities globally, including Columbia University, according to the program's admissions website. Dong graduated in 2019 with a major in Economics from Barnard College in New York, which is affiliated with Columbia University.

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