Editorial
Editorial

Chinese Clinical Oncology: a new oncology journal for oncology physicians and researchers worldwide

To Professor Shukui Qin, as Editor-in-Chief of Chinese Clinical Oncology, to the leadership of STCR, CSCO, as well as authors and readers: welcome to the world stage of oncology professional communication through the Chinese Clinical Oncology Journal!

As a past officer of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Society of Surgical Oncology, and as Editorin- Chief of the Annals of Surgical Oncology, I personally welcome the addition of this journal as a valuable benefit to oncologists of all medical specialties (surgical, medical, radiation, pediatric, etc.) and cancer investigators. Having watched the extraordinary growth of multidisciplinary cancer care in China over the past decade, as well as the significant advances in biomedical cancer research among clinical and laboratory investigators, and having visiting many of your medical centers and the CSCO meeting over many decades, I am confident that your new journal will be a major vehicle for disseminating important new information about cancer management and research advances conducted in China and throughout the world.

The field of oncology publications worldwide is growing, due to a rapidly expanding fund of knowledge from basic, translational and clinical research in the cancer field. In fact, there are over 185 oncology-related journals in the world registered with the Thompson Reuters (ISI) Web of Knowledge, and a growing number of “open access” journals on the topic. It is a large and competitive arena for high quality publications. Nevertheless, I am confident that Chinese Clinical Oncology will provide another venue for high quality publications based upon the impressive expansive of research activities in China and will attract excellent publications from investigators in China, elsewhere in Asia, and throughout the world. Just as the journal of Clinical Oncology has been a valuable publications for ASCO and the Annals of Surgical Oncology for the Society of Surgical Oncology, so too will this journal be of great value to members of the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology and the Society of Translational Cancer Research.

Modern cancer management and research is inherently a multidisciplinary approach that is enhanced by a team of specialists, each bringing their unique perspective to the common issue of treatment planning or addressing a research question.

Although we (as cancer clinicians and investigators) are traditionally organized based on the vertical organizational structure of our specialty (surgery, medical oncology, radiation oncology, pediatric oncology, pathology, etc.) or basic science discipline (tumor biology, immunology, genetics etc.), the very nature of cancer management as it becomes a chronic condition requires a more horizontal organizational approach with multidisciplinary teams collaborating together. This approach, in my view, represents the best of cancer disease management and research because the team can better address and coordinate the continuum of multidisciplinary cancer care and the survivorship issues after active treatment is completed. Indeed, there is evidence that the synergisms that come about with a multidisciplinary disease management approach provide the most optimal, efficient, and cost-effective cancer care and maximizes research productivity. Because of the journal’s central focus on multidisciplinary oncology management and research, the Chinese Clinical Oncology Journal, under Professor Qin’s able leadership, will no doubt provide new information that of value to all the oncology specialists who treat cancer patients and who conduct biomedical research worldwide.


Charles M. Balch, MD, FACS
Editor-in-Chief, Annals of Surgical Oncology
Past Executive Vice-President and Chief Executive Officer, American Society of Clinical Oncology
Past-President, Society of Surgical Oncology
Professor of Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Dallas, Texas, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd. Dallas, TX 75390-8548, USA
(Email: charles.balch@utsouthwestern.edu.)

DOI: 10.3978/j.issn.2304-3865.2012.08.05

Disclosure: The author declares no conflict of interest.

http://www.thecco.net/article/view/989/1229

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