TYPES OF SUBMISSIONS

The following categories of submissions will be considered for inclusion in The Oncologist.

Original articles

Original articles describing new findings of major clinical importance or with direct relevance to the clinic are welcomed by The Oncologist for review. We encourage submissions from all fields of cancer medicine, including radiation oncology, surgical oncology, medical and pediatric oncology, cancer prevention and outreach, and population science. A list of journal sections featured in The Oncologist can be found here. Highest priority is given to manuscripts with clear potential for application to the current or future practice of cancer medicine. Robust statistical analysis is required. Preclinical studies may be acceptable for publication if their relevance to clinical oncological practice is apparent.

All original articles are reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief and the appropriate Section Editors. Selected manuscripts are also anonymously peer-reviewed by external experts in the field. Reviewers comments generated through this external review process are returned to the author for consideration in revising the manuscript. Revisions are also peer reviewed and may be sent back to the same reviewers or to additional external experts in the field.

Original articles should meet the following criteria:

The manuscript should include an Abstract, informative Introduction, clearly stated Materials and Methods, a succinct presentation of Results, and a Discussion that places the findings in context and examines the implications for cancer management. Detailed instructions and formats are available on The Oncologist website.

Total word count (excluding the abstract, references, and text for figures and tables), should not exceed 4,000 words.
Abstracts, which are limited to a maximum of 250 words, should clearly state the manuscript’s primary objective, discuss the implications of the work, and summarize any conclusions.
Total number of figures and tables should not exceed seven (any additional figures and/or tables should be labeled as “supplemental” and will appear online only).
A CONSORT diagram is required for all Randomized and Phase III trials (the diagram does not count toward the seven figure and table limit).
For manuscripts involving clinical trials the manuscript also must include:
- The trial registry and registration identification number for the trial’s registry is required. This applies to any trial for which patient enrollment began on or after November 1, 2006.
- Any study related protocol information for all randomized clinical trials.
The majority of the manuscript text, excluding the abstract and introduction, should present new data and discussion that address the impact of new concepts or information on clinical disease management.
References should not exceed 50 entries, and should be limited to recent works, and follow the format provided on the journal’s website (http://authors.theoncologist.com/manuscript-preparation-guidelines-).

Review articles

While the majority of Review Articles are solicited by the Editors, The Oncologist also welcomes unsolicited reviews that address clinical topics or have direct relevance to the clinic and are of significant interest to the cancer research and cancer care community. Review Articles will be reviewed in the same manner as Original Articles. We will review manuscripts submitted by academic, government, or industry authors, but not medical writers or their paid representatives.

Prior to submitting an unsolicited manuscript, authors are asked to review published reviews on the same topic in recent editions of our journal, as well as in other widely read publications. Authors should submit a pre-submission inquiry to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . All authors should be identified in the pre-submission inquiry. The author should explain in the pre-submission inquiry what new information or perspective justifies the manuscript as a candidate for publication in The Oncologist. In addition, the inquiry must also:

Provide a detailed description of the primary concepts and discoveries addressed in the manuscript and discuss recent reviews on the same topic in our journal and related publications
List specific clinical trials, if pertinent, to be discussed in the manuscript
Disclose any potential conflict of interests for all authors

Review articles must also meet the following criteria:

Total word count (excluding the abstract, references, and text for figures and tables), should not exceed 4,000 words.
Abstracts, which are limited to a maximum of 250 words, should clearly state the manuscript’s primary objective, discuss the implications of the work, and summarize any conclusions.
The majority of the manuscript text, excluding the abstract and introduction, should address the impact of new concepts or information on clinical disease management, including prognosis, treatment, prevention, or diagnosis.
The Materials and Methods section should detail how the authors planned the review of the literature, what information was included or excluded, whether levels of evidence were used in assessing the value of each publication selected for inclusion, and whether unpublished material was included.
Opinions not supported by clear evidence should be identified as such in the Discussion section.
Total number of figures and tables should not exceed seven (any additional figures and/or tables should be labeled as “supplemental” and will appear online only).
References should not exceed 150 entries, be limited to recent works, and formatted based on the examples on the journal’s website (http://authors.theoncologist.com/manuscript-preparation-guidelines-). The authors may also include previous high-quality reviews that summarize earlier work on the subject of the review.

Clinical Trial Results

Clinical Trial Results publishes not only positive phase II trials in brief but also phase II trials that do not have positive therapeutic outcomes but provide valuable insight into pharmacology, drug interactions, and reasons for drug failure. This information should not be lost to the community of investigators and practitioners.

Full Clinical Trial Results and all supportive documentation are published online at www.TheOncologist.com. Full Clinical Trial Results are accompanied by one-page summaries published in print and online. Authors are required to submit their summary with the initial submission. This summary consists of a structured abstract of no more than 200 words with four sections: Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusion. Authors have two options for the Discussion: 350 words with two figures and/or tables; or 450 words with a single salient graphic, such as a table, schema, waterfall plot, image, or graph. The summary and the full Clinical Trial Results share a title and DOI. Authors are asked to clearly identify the sponsor, coordinating site, participating sites, and investigators.

Editorials and commentaries
Editorials and commentaries are most often solicited by the Editors. These may appear in any section of the Journal, depending on the content of the article, and should contain no more than 1,500 words. The commentary format may be used for ongoing dialogues, pro-and-con discussions of controversial issues, or subjective articles of interest in any field of oncology. Contact the Editor-in-Chief before submission to determine the suitability of the piece for publication.

Art, poetry, personal reflections
The Reflections section is reserved for the thoughts, feelings, and deep concerns of caregivers, their cancer patients, and their loved ones. The editors encourage our readers to share their art, poetry, and personal reflections.

Letters and eLetters to the Editor
Letters should comment on work previously published in The Oncologist and should contain fewer than 500 words of text. The Editor-in-Chief may, at his discretion, invite a reply to a given letter. The Editor-in-Chief may consider publication of an item that is not a response but contains valuable information or observations; note, however, that Letters to the Editor should not be used to circumvent the peer-review process.

Announcements
Announcements of meetings and conferences that are of interest to the readership of The Oncologist should be received by the Editorial Office at least 6 weeks before the event. These are posted online only.