Move to New York City

In 1947, Tsai-Fan Yu moved to New York City, beginning the U.S. phase of her medical and research career. The specific arrival date is not documented, but the year marks her transition from Chinese academic medicine to American hospital and university settings.

Arriving as an immigrant physician just after World War II, Yu entered a U.S. medical system where women—especially women of color and foreign‑trained doctors—faced structural barriers in hiring, promotion, and research support. Despite these obstacles, she secured roles that included teaching at Columbia University and, soon afterwards, work at Mount Sinai Hospital, one of New York’s leading academic centers.

This move was historically significant because it enabled Yu to connect her PUMC training with large U.S. patient populations and robust research infrastructure. In New York, she began the gout investigations that would eventually redefine the disease as a metabolic disorder of uric acid and lead to widely adopted drug therapies.

For women’s and migration history, Yu’s 1947 relocation illustrates how an accomplished woman physician negotiated national borders and professional gatekeeping to build an influential career in American medicine. It also foreshadows her later achievements as the first woman full professor at Mount Sinai and a long‑term NIH‑funded investigator.