Submission Instructions and Editorial Policies

Applied Radiation Oncology is a peer-reviewed, clinical journal published quarterly by Anderson Publishing, Ltd. Each issue is delivered electronically to more than 4,000 practicing radiation oncologists worldwide.

Articles submitted to Applied Radiation Oncology must be original, highlighting novel work. We primarily publish review articles, case reports and research papers. Topics may pertain to clinical management, applications of a particular technology for cancer treatment or other relevant conditions, as well as administration, fiscal, technical, medico-legal and other issues relevant to the practice of radiation oncology.

Use the side bar links to view our author instructions on how to prepare and submit a review article, research article, or case report for consideration.

Review Articles

All materials submitted to Applied Radiation Oncology must be original and previously unpublished in any other journal or website.

  • Please follow these instructions in preparing your manuscript for submission. Submissions that do not adhere to these instructions will not be considered for publication.
  • Please also see Editorial Policies for important information including authorship guidelines. As a general rule, Applied Radiation Oncology follows the manuscript submission guidelines and requirements set forth by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
  • Please follow the format specified for each manuscript and include the required sections.

Submission: Please submit your article to Applied Radiation Oncology via our submission portal. There is no submission fee.

Content Basics
Style All submissions should follow the conventions of the AMA Manual of Style, 11th Edition for content, references, figures and tables.
Word count Review articles should be 2,000–3,000 words, excluding references.
File format Manuscripts and their associated elements (abstract, title page) must be submitted in Word format. PDFs will be rejected.
Figures Must be submitted as separate image files (JPEG, PNG, TIF). Images should not be embedded in the Word document.
Core elements All submissions must include the following elements. Click the links below for submission requirements pertaining to each:
All submissions must include the following completed forms:
Manuscript

Prior to developing your article, we strongly encourage you to read several review articles on the Applied Radiation Oncology site to familiarize yourself with our style and format.

Anonymization: Please remove identifying information from the article manuscript for peer review purposes. Identifying information from the title page will be included in accepted articles.

Review articles should be 1500-3,000 words, excluding references, and should include the following sections:

Article title Maximum length: 128 characters.
Abstract Include background, key points, and main lessons to be learned from the review article. No more than 300 words. Keywords should also be listed (10 or fewer).
Introduction Introduce the condition/disease that will be discussed, describe its impact on patient populations, and introduce techniques and technology used to treat the condition/disease. Topics may also center on administrative, fiscal, technical, medicolegal and other pertinent issues.
Body As applicable, describe the featured technology and the clinical utility/application of the technology using relevant examples.
Conclusion As applicable, summarize key findings and the efficacy of the technology in patient management.

Research Articles

Applied Radiation Oncology welcomes submissions of research articles that are geared to the radiation oncologist.

  • All materials submitted to Applied Radiation Oncology must be original and previously unpublished in any other journal or website.
  • Please follow these instructions in preparing your manuscript for submission. Submissions that do not adhere to these instructions will not be considered for publication.
  • Please also see Editorial Policies for important information including authorship guidelines. As a general rule, Applied Radiation Oncology follows the manuscript submission guidelines and requirements set forth by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

Submission: Please submit your article to Applied Radiation Oncology via our submission portal. There is no submission fee.

Content Basics
Style All submissions should follow the conventions of the AMA Manual of Style, 11th Edition for content, references, figures and tables.
Word count Research articles should be 1,500–3,000 words, excluding references.
File format Manuscripts and their associated elements (abstract, title page) must be submitted in Word format. PDFs will be rejected.
Figures Must be submitted as separate image files (JPEG, PNG, TIF). Images should not be embedded in the Word document.
Core elements All submissions must include: All submissions must include:
Manuscript

Prior to developing your article, we strongly encourage you to read several research articles on the Applied Radiation Oncology site to familiarize yourself with our style and format.

Anonymization: Please remove identifying information from the article manuscript for peer review purposes. Identifying information from the title page will be included in accepted articles.

Research articles should be 1,500-3,000 words, excluding references, and should include the following sections:

Article title Maximum length 128 characters.
Abstract No more than 300 words. Provide a short overview of the research, including the objective and hypothesis, methods and materials, results, conclusions, and keywords (10 or fewer). Funding sources should be listed separately after the abstract to facilitate proper display and indexing for search retrieval.
Introduction State the objectives and provide background, including a brief review of the literature. Discuss what experimental question the study aims to answer and state the hypothesis. Briefly describe how the hypothesis was tested and how the results will contribute to radiation oncology.
Methods and Materials Include a straightforward description of the methods used in the study, including enough detail so the work may be reproduced. References should be used for previously published methods, with relevant modifications described.
Results Results should be concise, presenting the data.
Discussion Briefly provide an overview of the work. Summarize the most important findings and, if applicable, accept or reject the hypothesis. Identify the most interesting, significant findings and contrast them to other studies. Consider other works that address the topic and how the work contributes to radiation oncology.
Conclusion State the primary conclusions of the study.

Case Reports

Applied Radiation Oncology welcomes radiological case reports and pediatric radiological case reports highlighting medical imaging’s role in patient care and treatment. Case reports must pertain to and reflect actual practical application of one or more medical imaging modalities to a specific condition, injury, or disease.

  • All materials submitted to Applied Radiation Oncology must be original and previously unpublished in any other journal or website.
  • Please follow these instructions in preparing your manuscript for submission. Submissions that do not adhere to these instructions will not be considered for publication.
  • Please also see Editorial Policies for important information including authorship guidelines. As a general rule, Applied Radiation Oncology follows manuscript submission guidelines and requirements set forth by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) found at ICMJE | Recommendations | Preparing a Manuscript for Submission to a Medical Journal.

Please submit your case report to Applied Radiation Oncology via the submission portal.

Content Basics
Style All submissions should follow the conventions of the AMA Manual of Style, 11th Edition for content, references, figures and tables.
Word count Case reports should be 750-1000 words, excluding references.
File format Manuscripts and their associated elements (abstract, title page) must be submitted in Word format. PDFs will be rejected.
Figures Must be submitted as separate image files (JPEG, PNG, TIF). Images should not be embedded in the Word document.
Core elements All submissions must include:
Required forms
Manuscript

Prior to developing your article, we strongly encourage you to read several case articles on the Applied Radiation Oncology site to familiarize yourself with our style and format.

Anonymization: Please remove identifying information from the article manuscript for peer review purposes. Identifying information from the title page will be included in accepted articles.

Case reports should not exceed 1,000 words, excluding references, and should incorporate CARE (CAse REport) guidelines wherever possible and include the following sections:

Article title The title should consist only of the diagnosis. Maximum length 128 characters.
Abstract Briefly provide background, key points, and main lessons to be learned from the case report in no more than 150 words. Keywords: 5 or fewer.
Case Summary 100-150 words. A brief review of the patient’s presenting complaint, clinical examination, laboratory data, and other relevant clinical features. Please mention factors such as gender and ethnicity only if clinically relevant.
Imaging Findings 100-150 words. Provide an explanation of the imaging findings of your case, referencing the pertinent figures (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.) submitted with your case report.
Diagnosis State the case diagnosis and any differential diagnostic considerations, if applicable.
Discussion 500-600 words. A succinct but thorough review of the pertinent historical, clinical, radiological, and pathological characteristics of the patient’s injury, disease or other condition. Radiologic/pathologic correlation is encouraged.
Conclusion 75-100 words. One or two paragraphs summarizing key points of the case and condition.
Title Page

The title page should include the article title (limited to 128 characters), as well as the following information:

Author Information List all authors, including full names, highest degrees and professional initials (e.g., MD, DO, PhD, MS), titles, and current affiliations (department, institution/company, city, state). All authors must provide email addresses for submission and authorship confirmation. If applicable, include X (formerly Twitter) handles. See Authorship/Contributorship Requirements in Editorial Policies, including policies regarding artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted technology.
Corresponding Author Provide complete contact information including mailing address, phone number, and email address. Confirm that the patient provided informed written consent for publication. Submissions without confirmation will not be considered
Informed Consent (Case Reports Only) Do not submit the signed consent form, but confirm that it is available if requested. Authors may use the ARO informed consent form. If using a different form, provide a blank copy to ARO to ensure required elements are included. See Informed Consent and Patient Details in Editorial Policies for additional details
Peer Reviewer Recommendations Suggest 3 or more potential reviewers. Include names, departments, institutions, and institutional email addresses. The editorial office may or may not use the recommendations. Do not alert recommended reviewers due to double-anonymized review.
Author Disclosures All disclosures must be provided and include the components listed below.
  • Conflict of Interest: Disclose any actual, potential, or apparent conflicts of interest by completing and submitting a Disclosure of Interest form.
  • Source(s) of SupportDisclose any grants, equipment, drugs, or other support used in conducting or writing the work.
  • Prior Publication/Presentation:Manuscripts must be original. If any portion was previously published or presented (e.g., abstract, meeting presentation), provide a complete citation. Preprints are permitted but must comply with the journal’s preprint policy (see Editorial Policies).
Use the following format on the title page (modify as appropriate)
  • Wording of Disclosures : Disclosure: The author(s) have no conflicts of interest to disclose. None of the authors received outside funding for the production of this original manuscript and no part of this article has been previously published elsewhere.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) See Authorship/Contributorship Requirements for AI policies. If AI-assisted tools were used, include a statement such as:
  • Declaration on the use of AI:The authors declare that no generative artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted technologies were used to generate content, ideas, or theories in this work. AI was used solely to enhance readability and refine language. The manuscript has been carefully reviewed and edited by the authors to ensure accuracy.
Keywords List up to 10 relevant keywords. This statement will be published in the article and must include:
  • Type of data used
  • Whether data are shared and any restrictions
  • Data location/repository and persistent identifier (e.g., DOI)
  • How to access the data
  • Licensing information (if applicable)
  • Data referenced must be cited in the manuscript and included in the references. See Data Sharing and Reproducibility Policy for details.
Data Availability Statement (Research Submissions Only) Begin the statement with one of the following (as applicable):
  • Data are available in a public, open access repository (include repository name, DOI, reuse requirements).
  • Data are available upon reasonable request (describe data, contact details with permission, conditions of reuse, and whether additional materials are available).
  • Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available (describe data, contact details, reuse conditions, and additional materials availability)
  • All data relevant to the study are provided in the article or supplement.
  • Data sharing is not applicable as no datasets were generated/analyzed for this study.
  • No data are available.
References

Please use AMA format for references and overall style. Reference citations in the text must be numbered sequentially in order of first appearance in the text, superscripted, and placed outside of the immediately preceding punctuation.

A list of references corresponding numerically to the citations in the manuscript must immediately follow the body. References should be formatted in accordance with the AMA Manual of Style.

Overall Style References must be formatted in accordance with the AMA Manual of Style.
In-Text Citations Reference citations must be numbered sequentially in order of first appearance in the text, superscripted, and placed outside of the immediately preceding punctuation.
Reference List Placement A list of references corresponding numerically to the citations in the manuscript must immediately follow the body of the manuscript.
Journal Title Abbreviations Use journal title abbreviations set by the National Library of Medicine in Index Medicus and on Medline. If unsure of the proper abbreviation, include the full journal title.
DOI Requirement Include a DOI where applicable.
Preferred Source Material Whenever possible, references should be made to published articles rather than to abstracts.
Journal Article Example Gage BF, Fihn SD, White RH. Management and dosing of warfarin therapy. Am J Med. 2000;109(6):481-488. doi:10.1016/S0002-9343(00)00545-553.
Website Example International Society for Infectious Diseases. ProMED-mail. Accessed February 10, 2024. http://www.promedmail.org
Book Example Etzel RA, Balk SJ, eds. Pediatric Environmental Health. American Academy of Pediatrics; 2011.
Chapter in a Book Example Prince M, Glozier N, Sousa R, Dewey M. Measuring disability across physical, mental and cognitive disorders. In: Regier DA, Narrow WE, eds. The Conceptual Evolution of DSM-5. American Psychiatric Publishing Inc; 2011:189-227.
Figures and Tables Figures
Maximum Number of Figures Articles may include a maximum of 10 figures, comprising no more than 20 individual images in total.
Figure File Submission

Figures must be submitted as individual image files and must not be embedded within the manuscript.

Do not submit images taken directly from websites. Authors should download and review the Image Submission Guidelines.
File Format and Resolution

Images must be submitted as JPEG, PNG, or TIF files with a resolution of > 4 inches wide at 300 dpi (or 22 inches wide at 72 dpi).
Multipart Figures (A, B, C, etc.)

Each part of a multipart figure must be submitted as a separate image file and should not be combined into a single composite image

Do not include labels (A, B, C, etc.) on the images themselves. Name and save files as Figure 1A, Figure 1B, Figure 1C, etc.
Technical Adjustments Minor technical adjustments for readability (eg, color balance, contrast, brightness) are acceptable only if applied to the entire digital image. Manipulation that augments, obscures, omits, or adds elements to an image is not permitted. Any technical adjustments must be disclosed by the author.
Figure Citation in Text Each figure must be cited in numerical order within the manuscript text (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.).
Figure Legends A descriptive legend must be provided for each figure. Legends should clearly describe the appearance and relevance of the figure without duplicating article text. Figure legends must be included as a list in the manuscript body following the References section.
Previously Published or Copyrighted Figures Previously published and/or copyrighted figures are permitted only with written permission from the copyright holder (eg, Elsevier, McGraw-Hill). Written permission must be supplied upon manuscript submission. Do not submit materials without explicit copyright permission.
Tables
Citation and Numbering All tables must be cited in the manuscript text and numbered in order of first appearance (Table 1, Table 2, etc.).
Table Format Tables must be submitted as editable text (not images), as they will be reformatted to fit journal publication style.
Submission Method Tables may be embedded within the manuscript or submitted as separate files.
Titles and Footnotes

Each table must include a title. All abbreviations, symbols, and footnotes must be defined beneath the table using the following format:

Abbreviations: ICI, immune checkpoint inhibitor; RT, radiation therapy; SVI, seminal vesicle invasion
Previously Published or Copyrighted Tables Previously published and/or copyrighted tables are permitted only with written permission from the copyright holder (eg, Elsevier, McGraw-Hill). Written permission must be supplied at the time of manuscript submission. Do not submit materials without explicit copyright permission.

Editorial Policies

AUTHOR GUIDELINES Authorship/Contributorship Requirements

Authors must ensure that no part of their manuscript has been published or is under review by another publishing house. Applied Radiation Oncology only accepts original unpublished work. Portions of the manuscript presented at a conference as an abstract, poster, presentation or exhibit may be published with an acknowledgement of the disclosure. Authors must indicate any use of copyrighted material and provide permission to reprint the material with their submission. Authors must also identify individuals who provide writing assistance, and disclose any funding source for this assistance. The order of authors listed in a manuscript should indicate level of contribution (first author listed is the lead author; co-leads are acceptable). The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) lists four requirements for authorship, which all authors must meet.

  1. Substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data.
  2. Drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
  3. Final approval of the version to be published.
  4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Contributors who do not meet all four criteria should be listed in an acknowledgement statement. As the ICMJE further states: In addition to being accountable for their parts of the work, an author should be able to identify which co-authors are responsible for specific other parts of the work.(Applied Radiation Oncology advises that contributions be declared on submission using the roles, as applicable, outlined by CRediT – Contributor Roles Taxonomy).

Each submission should list a corresponding author and their contact information; this author takes primary responsibility for communication with the journal during the manuscript submission, peer review, and publication process. Authors should have confidence in the integrity of their co-authors’ contributions. Concerns raised regarding authorship problems will be addressed using COPE guidance described at and within: COPE Council. COPE Flowcharts and infographics — How to Recognize Potential Authorship Problems — English. ©2021 Committee on Publication Ethics (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Authors should follow the additional guidelines listed in the “Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Requirements for Manuscripts” as set forth by ICMJE.

Applied Radiation Oncology also follows the Editorial Policies developed by the Council of Science Editors (CSE), which describes the rights and responsibilities of editors of peer-reviewed journals.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-Assisted Technology: Authors must disclose on submission whether AI-assisted technology (e.g. chatbots [such as ChatGPT], image creators, large language models) were used in producing their work. AI writing assistance should be reported in the disclosures section (see Title Page/Author disclosures).

Authors should not list or cite AI and AI-assisted technologies as an author/coauthor as such tools cannot fulfill author responsibility to ensure accuracy, integrity, and originality of the work. As such, humans are responsible for submitted items that utilized AI, with careful review of materials, given that AI can produce information that is biased, incomplete or erroneous. Authors must also confirm that their manuscript does not include plagiarized material, including information provided by AI. Likewise, authors must confirm that quoted material is appropriately attributed and cited.

Fees

There are no fees for manuscript submission or related publishing services.

Conflicts of Interest

Authors must state any actual, potential, or apparent conflicts of interest on the article cover page, and submit a disclosure form during the manuscript submission process. All sources of financial support for the article or any author relationships with manufacturers of any products mentioned in the article must be stated.

Conflicts of interest will be included in final publication to maintain scientific integrity. Cases of potential undisclosed conflicts of interest will be investigated in accordance with guidelines by the Committee of Publication Ethics: COPE Council. COPE Flowcharts and infographics — Undisclosed Conflict of Interest in a Submitted Manuscript— English.

Peer reviewers, editors, and publishers must also disclose conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from any publishing activities in which a conflict exists.

Data Sharing and Reproducibility

Applied Radiation Oncology does not mandate data sharing. Authors must be transparent about their data-sharing intentions, and data should be made available to Applied Radiation Oncology for inspection upon request, when appropriate.

Applied Radiation Oncology recommends the sharing and archiving of data and related artifacts that support the results stated in a manuscript in a relevant public repository, such as Dryad, Vivli, The Cancer Imaging Archive (TCIA), Figshare, Synapse, etc.

A data availability statement, which will be published in the article, must be included in research manuscripts and state 1) the type of data used, 2) whether data are being shared for reuse and/or any restrictions thereof, 3) the data location or repository used along with a persistent identifier link (e.g., a digital object identifier [DOI]), 4) how to access the data, and 5) any relevant licensing information.

If the data are not publicly available or accessible, this information should be indicated. Data noted in the data-sharing statement should be cited in the manuscript and included in the references. Manuscripts reporting a clinical trial must follow Requirements for Clinical Trial Data Sharing developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

Applied Radiation Oncology supports FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, reproducible) data principles, and recommends adherence to the Data Citation Synthesis Group: Joint Declaration of Data Citation Principles. Martone M. (ed.) San Diego CA: FORCE11; 2014, and New Models of Data Stewardship for NIH-funded biomedical data.

Data availability statements should begin with the following italicized language as it applies (or a combination thereof):

  • Data are available in a public, open access repository. Please list repository name, the persistent URL (e.g., DOI), and any reuse requirements (e.g., license, embargo).
  • Data are available upon reasonable request. Please state what the data are (e.g., deidentified participant data), who the data are available from, their publishable contact details (e.g., email address or ORCID identifier – permission must be granted for their use) and under what conditions reuse is allowed. Please note whether additional information is available (e.g., protocols, statistical analysis plans)?
  • Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. Please state what the data are (e.g., deidentified participant data), who the data are available from, their publishable contact details (e.g., email address or ORCID identifier – permission must be granted for their use) and under what conditions reuse is permitted. Please note whether additional information is available (e.g., protocols, statistical analysis plans)?
  • All data relevant to the study are provided in the article or supplement.
  • Data sharing is not applicable as no datasets were generated/analyzed for this study.
  • No data are available.
Copyright and Licensing

Once a manuscript is accepted for publication, it becomes the property of Anderson Publishing, Ltd., publisher of Applied Radiation Oncology. All authors must sign a copyright transfer agreement. The assignment of rights to Anderson Publishing includes, but is not limited to, rights to edit, publish, reproduce, distribute copies, and publish in electronic form or other media.

Authors retain the right to revise, adapt, prepare derivative works, present orally, or distribute the article, provided notice of copyright is given. To obtain permission please fill out the form.

For additional information, please email Kieran Anderson, group publisher: kieran@appliedradiology.com.

REVIEWER GUIDELINES

Peer

All review articles are reviewed by radiologists and related experts whose expertise most closely matches the article topic. A minimum of 1 peer reviewer is required for each submission. Peer reviewers are responsible for critically evaluating a submission and providing constructive and honest feedback to authors about their submission.

Peer reviewers should examine the strengths and weaknesses of the article and suggest ways to heighten the quality of the work. Reviews are double-blind and assess the practicality, originality, scope, accuracy, organization, clarity, presentation, usefulness, and overall content and quality of the manuscripts, as well as adherence to the article submission policies.

Reviewers typically have 10 business days to comment and recommend one of the following: reject, major revision, minor revision, accept. Authors receive a summary of comments, which may include tracked changes; they must address each point when submitting revisions. The reviewer(s) may recommend accepting or rejecting revisions or may ask for additional corrections/revisions. The editor in chief makes the final publishing decision.

Applied Radiation Oncology  follows the recommendations for peer reviewers as set forth in Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals developed by ICMJE. These recommendations state that because manuscripts submitted to journals are privileged communications, reviewers must keep manuscripts and the information they contain strictly confidential.

Reviewers must not publicly discuss authors’ work and must not appropriate authors’ ideas before manuscript publication. Reviewers who solicit aid with a review from other experts (who must also ensure confidentiality of the manuscript) should acknowledge these contributions in the written comments provided to the editor.

Reviewers must not retain the manuscript for personal use and should destroy copies of manuscripts after submitting their reviews. Reviewers are expected to respond promptly to requests to review, and to submit reviews within the time agreed. Reviewers’ comments should be constructive, honest, and polite; hostile or unprofessional reviews will not be accepted.

Reviewers should declare their conflicts of interest using the ICMJE form or equivalent and recuse themselves from the peer-review process if a conflict exists. In addition, reviewers should be on the lookout for and flag any possible ethical concerns in the article such as citation manipulation, image manipulation, plagiarism, and data falsification/fabrication.

Applied Radiation Oncology only edits reviews to address issues of tone, language/grammar, and deviations from journal policy and reviewer guidelines. The journal will not alter the meaning or intention of the review or change the reviewer’s professional opinion regarding the submission’s quality, content, or intellectual validity. If significant edits are needed for a review Applied Radiation Oncology will inform the reviewer and ask for revisions.

Applied Radiation Oncology also follows the Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), and provides these and additional resources/directions to reviewers to assist training.

Appeals

If an author believes their manuscript was rejected because of an error or misunderstanding, they may contact the editorial office in writing to describe their concern. Reasons for an appeal, which are not commonly granted, may not be based on conflicting opinions regarding manuscript originality, interest, or suitability. Rather, an appeal must provide strong evidence or new data that addresses and alleviates concerns with a manuscript. The editor in chief will consider the appeal, and the response will be final. Re-evaluation may require additional peer review, significant revisions, and/or additional mechanisms of assessment such as editorial advisory board review.

ETHICAL POLICY

Overview

Applied Radiation Oncology adheres to ICMJE’s Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals with regard to suspected scientific misconduct. Authors involved in ethical misconduct may be banned from submitting future manuscripts, and articles that violate ethical practices will be retracted.

Ethical misconduct in publishing includes plagiarism, data falsification, duplicate publishing, and inappropriate authorship (e.g., article submission with author agreement, inclusion of authors who did not significantly contribute to the work, or exclusion of authors contributed extensively). Applied Radiation Oncology follows guidelines set forth by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in dealing with ethics allegations. See Applied Radiation Oncology’s individual policies for details.

Post-Publication Discussions

Post-publication critiques are a way for readers to voice concerns or seek clarification about published articles. Readers may submit a letter to the managing editor of Applied Radiation Oncology for consideration. If accepted, Applied Radiation Oncology will invite the article authors to respond within a suggested time frame of two weeks. The critique and response may undergo peer review, if deemed appropriate.

Critiques should contain reasonable content that focuses on the substance of the article, and be timely, constructive, and useful to readers, adding to the value of the manuscript. Critiques should be less than 1,000 words, must not contain libelous or defamatory content, and must provide evidence/data to uphold claims.

The comment and reply are published in the same journal edition, with the reply following the comment. If several similar comments are received, the editors may publish only a portion of them. An editorial decision will be made within two weeks if possible whether any additional action is appropriate regarding a critique, such as article corrections, retraction or related amendments.

This policy follows COPE’s Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections policy. Citation: COPE Council. COPE Flowcharts and infographics —Handling of Post-Publication Critiques— English. ©2021 Committee on Publication Ethics (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Complaints

Applied Radiation Oncology abides by the Authors, reviewers, readers, and associated parties who have a well-founded concern that the conduct of the journal, its staff, editorial board or publisher deviates from the Core Practices should email the journal’s editor-in-chief and/or group publisher, at: kieran@appliedradiology.com. Valid concerns will be addressed as promptly as possible.

Corrections (Errata)

Errors or important omissions made by authors or introduced by editors, production staff or printers will be corrected at the first opportunity. This means providing a correction notice in the next available journal issue and correcting the error within the article in question as soon as possible. Corrections will be noted in the table of contents.

Allegations of Research Misconduct

Should the editors, publisher or other affiliates of Applied Radiation Oncology be made aware of any misconduct allegation involving pre-publication or post-publication in the journal, the editors/publisher will adhere to guidelines set forth by COPE to address allegations. Such allegations include, but are not limited to, plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data falsification/fabrication.

To help identify and prevent research misconduct, peer reviewers and editors should flag any concerns including but not limited to potential plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data fabrication/falsification, so that Applied Radiation Oncology may investigate accordingly using additional specialized reviews and COPE protocols.

Plagiarism is defined as “unauthorized appropriation of other people’s ideas, processes, or text without giving correct credit and with intention to present it as own property. Appropriation of own published ideas or text and passing it as original is denominated self-plagiarism and considered as bad as plagiarism.”1

There are four types of self-plagiarism: publishing an article in more than one journal; partitioning one study into several publications (salami-slicing); text recycling; and copyright infringement.2

Citation manipulation occurs when references are listed only to expand the number of citations in an article without supporting article content. Including or suggesting citations that are self-promotional to any party (author, reviewer, editor, etc.) is a violation of publication ethics.

Citations of the journal or the editor-in-chief’s work must not be included with any expectation that it will foster publication acceptance. In addition, to help prevent image manipulation, Applied Radiation Oncology requests that authors submit original radiographical images when applicable; however, is acceptable for authors to provide images that are technically adjusted for readability (e.g., improved color balance, contrast or brightness if applied to the entire digital image vs select parts).

Unacceptable manipulation involves augmenting, obscuring, or omitting/adding elements to an image. If technical adjustments are made, the author should note this during the submission process. Concerns raised regarding image manipulation will be investigated according to COPE protocols found at: COPE Council. COPE Flowcharts and infographics — Inappropriate Image Manipulation in a Published Article— English. ©2021 Committee on Publication Ethics (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).

References

1 Mehić B. Plagiarism and self-plagiarism. Bosn J Basic Med Sci. 2013;13(3):139. doi:10.17305/bjbms.2013.2344

2 Roig M. Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to ethical writing (Revised on-line version published in August. 2013). [August 20.2013].

Preprint Servers

Applied Radiation Oncology allows for submission of manuscripts previously deposited on preprint servers. The author must link any preprint version to the final published article. The name and website of the server, as well as the preprint DOI, must be provided. Submissions are subject to peer review.

Informed Consent and Patient Details

To help provide privacy/security of personal information, details that identify patients should be omitted from all articles, illustrations, and related materials if they are not essential; it is generally not sufficient to use eye bars or face-blurring techniques. If identifying characteristics are altered to protect anonymity, such as in genetic pedigrees, authors should provide assurance that alterations do not distort scientific meaning. In manuscripts involving potentially vulnerable groups and in which informed consent may have required extra attention among the study authors and the institutions hosting the work/research, Applied Radiation Oncology advises that editors and other involved parties pay added attention to confidentiality and related details to ensure standards are met and are stated in applicable articles.

Vulnerable groups are those who are incapable of protecting their own interests; they may have insufficient power, intelligence, education, resources, strength, or other necessary traits to protect their interests.

Human, Animal Rights

Authors/researchers must ensure that the planning conduct and reporting of human research comply with the Helsinki Declaration Authors should secure approval to conduct research from an independent local, regional, or national review body such as an institutional review board, ethics committee, etc. If unsure whether the research complied with the Helsinki Declaration, the authors must explain the rationale for their approach and show that the review body approved any doubtful elements of the study.

Any animal experiments should comply with the ARRIVE guidelines and be carried out in accordance with the U.K. Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act, 1986 and associated guidelines, EU Directive 2010/63/EU for animal experiments, or the National Institutes of Health guide for the care and use of Laboratory animals (NIH Publications No. 8023, revised 1978).

The manuscript should state that such guidelines have been met. Additional guidelines on animal research ethics are available from the International Association of Veterinary Editors’ Consensus Author Guidelines on Animal Ethics and Welfare (http://veteditors.org/ethicsconsensusguidelines.html).

JOURNAL MANAGEMENT

Revenue and Advertising Policies

Applied Radiation Oncology is supported by advertisements featured on its website(s). Applied Radiation Oncology follows the recommendations for advertising set forth by the ICMJE’s Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals. These recommendations state that advertisements should not be juxtaposed with editorial content on the same product and should be clearly identifiable as advertisements.

Editors have full and final authority for approving advertisements and for enforcing advertising policy Applied Radiation Oncology will not carry advertisements for products proven to be seriously harmful to health and will consider all criticisms of advertisements for publication. Advertisements are not related in any way to editorial decision making.

Online advertisements are displayed at random vs being linked to content or reader behavior. Types of advertisements include banner advertisements, awareness of upcoming webinars, recently published white papers, and case reports.

Business and Marketing Practices

Applied Radiation Oncology published by Anderson Publishing in Scotch Plains, NJ, engages in various methods of direct marketing to foster brand recognition, build its subscriber base, and increase awareness of the journal content and its online offerings such as continuing medical education opportunities, webinars, blogs, and industry news. Direct marketing methods include use of social media (such as X, Instagram and Facebook), eNewsletters, eblasts, and digital banners.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Applied Radiation Oncology supports the Joint Statement of Principles Joint Statement of Principles – Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications (c4disc.org) set forth by the Coalition for Diversity & Inclusion in Scholarly Communications (C4DISC). These principles state: “In principle and in practice, collectively, C4DISC member and partner organizations value and seek accessibility, diversity, and equitable and inclusive practices within the scholarly communications ecosystem.

Our goal is to promote involvement, innovation, and expanded access to leadership opportunities that maximize engagement across identity groups and professional levels.” Among initiatives, Applied Radiation Oncology and its publisher Anderson Publishing strive to advance diversity, equity and inclusion throughout its editorial operations and policies by promoting these principles among the editorial advisory board, team of editors and publication professionals, peer reviewers and authors.

Software

Applied Radiation Oncology has contracted with Editorial Manager by Aires Systems, a leading cloud-based manuscript submission and peer-review tracking system for scholarly journals, reference works, books and other publications. The EM system requests that authors provide an ORCID ID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID). An industry standard, this ID is a free unique, persistent identifier for individuals to use as they engage in research, scholarship, and innovation activities.

Archiving

Applied Radiation Oncology has contracted with Portico preservation archive to guarantee long-term electronic backup and digital preservation of journal content.

ARTICLE CHECKLIST— BEFORE YOU SUBMIT

Click here for a downloadable PDF
Section Requirements / Details
Article Eligibility & Ethics
  • Manuscript is original, unpublished, and not under review elsewhere.
  • Any prior abstract, poster, or presentation is fully disclosed on the title page.
  • All authors meet ICMJE authorship criteria.
  • Use of AI-assisted tools (if any) is disclosed on the title page.
  • Patient confidentiality is protected (no identifying details).
  • Required IRB/ethics approvals are stated where applicable.
Article Type & Length Confirm article type and word count (excluding references):
  • Review Article:2,000–3,000 words
  • Research Article:1,500–3,000 words
  • Case Report≤1,000 words
  • Section structure matches required format for the selected article type.
Formatting
  • Manuscript follows AMA Manual of Style (11th ed.)
  • Manuscript, abstract, and title page submitted in Word (.docx) format (not PDF)
  • Manuscript text fully anonymized for peer review
  • Title length ≤128 characters
  • Abstract length within limits: -Review/Research: ≤300 words -Case Report: ≤150 words
  • Keywords included (≤10; Case Reports ≤5)
Required Sections Included
Title Page Requirements
  • Full author names, degrees, titles, and affiliations
  • Corresponding author contact information
  • Conflict of interest statement
  • Sources of funding/support disclosed (or explicitly stated as none)
  • Prior publication/presentation disclosure (if applicable)
  • AI-use disclosure statement included
  • Keywords listed
Figure
  • Submitted as separate files (not embedded in Word document)
  • File type: JPEG, PNG, GIF
  • Resolution meets requirements (≥300 dpi at >4 inches wide)
  • No labels embedded in images (A, B, C labeled in filenames only)
  • Figures cited in numerical order in text
  • Figure legends included after References
  • Written permission obtained for previously published figures
Tables
  • Tables submitted as editable text (not image files)
  • Each table includes a title and defined abbreviations
  • Tables cited in numerical order
  • Permissions obtained if previously published
References
  • References formatted in AMA style
  • Citations numbered in order of first appearance
  • Journal titles use Index Medicus abbreviations
  • DOIs included where available
  • Case Reports include no more than 10 references
Required Forms
Final Submission Check
  • All files uploaded separately and clearly labeled
  • Manuscript reviewed for clarity, accuracy, and completeness
  • Prepared for upload to the Applied Radiation Oncology submission portal
  • No submission or publication fees expected