Call for authors: Oncology’s new Practice & Policy section accepting submissions

The passage of MMA changed the oncology practice landscape, now we’re entering into unknown territory with Obama’s reform bill. Voice your opinions/perspectives on practice and policy issues affecting cancer care with 35,000 of your colleagues on the pages of ONCOLOGY.

On behalf of our medical editor-in-chief, Nora Janjan, MD, MPSA, MBA, I am pleased to invite you to contribute an article to a venture that represents an exciting new editorial direction in the 20-plus year history of the journal Oncology.

As you know, today’s cancer care delivery system is inextricably linked to the political and economic challenges in our rapidly evolving practice environment. To that end, we have created a new department called Practice & Policy (P&P), the editorial mission of which is to delivery high-grade analysis/commentary on the political, legislative, economic, regulatory, and practice [Could we say either just “practical” or just “practice”? (Maybe it’s not, but “practical practice” sounds a little redundant.)] issues that affect the delivery of cancer care.

Although the choice of subject is entirely yours, we encourage pieces that will provoke response in the form of letters-to-the-editor and/or rebuttal commentary from your colleagues in the field. For example, our September article, “Dendreon vs CMS: Why the Provenge Coverage Controversy Is Bigger Than Just One Product,” speaks to the growing unease-among policy makers-to pay for expensive oncology drugs that confer what they see as limited efficacy.

Guidelines:
• Articles should be limited to 2,000 words; ideal length is between 1,500 and 1,900 words.
• If references are included, please limit to 10.
• We prefer a paper with a strong voice, rather than an academic treatment; again, this is a forum for debate/education/analysis, so fire at will!
• Please include a recent head-shot (at least 300 DPI), proper affiliations and degrees, and any pertinent financial disclosures.
• If accepted for publication, your article will be edited for style and returned to you for final review.
• Send Word document to Ronald.piana@ubm.com
Why publish in ONCOLOGY?
•          Print circulation of 30,000 (3rd most-read oncology publication, after Journal of Clinical Oncology and New England Journal of Medicine)
•          Highly respected Editorial Board (Editors in Chief: Jim Armitage, Nancy Davidson, Nora Janjan, and William Wood)
•          Fully Open Access
•          Indexed in ISI, PubMed/Medline, etc.
•          Historic reputation for publishing strong, practical clinical reviews.
•          Online at www.cancernetwork.com

These are arresting times in American healthcare; we need open, energetic analysis and debate on the multiple issues that affect the oncology community. The editors look forward to bringing your important voice to the pages of Oncology.