Author Guidelines

Author Guidelines

To submit your paper, You need to register first then submit your paper.

Please read carefully and prepare your files (especially the manuscript file) as instructed here. A manuscript that does not follow the format will be returned to the author before undergoing any screening or review process.

Submission checklist

The following list is provided for you to carry out a final check of your submission before submission to the journal. Please refer to the relevant section in the Guide for Authors for more details.

Ensure that the following items are present:

One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details:

• E-mail address


• Full postal address

All necessary files have been uploaded:

Manuscript:

Include keywords

All figures (include relevant captions)

All tables (including titles, description, footnotes)

Ensure all figure and table citations in the text match the files provided

Indicate clearly if color should be used for any figures in print

Supplemental files (where applicable)

Further considerations

Manuscript has been 'spell-checked' and 'grammar-checked'

All references mentioned in the Reference List are cited in the text, and vice versa

Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Internet)

Relevant declarations of interest have been made

Journal policies detailed in this guide have been reviewed

Referee suggestions and contact details provided, based on journal requirements

Accepted Manuscript Types

The APJCN accepts the following manuscript types:

• Short Communications:  The length should not exceed 3,000 words and no more than 2 tables and figures, and no more than 20 references.


• Research Articles: No invitation required. Up to 5000 words for the main text of the manuscript excluding the reference list, 6 tables and figures, and no more than 40 references.


• Methodological papers:  No invitation required. Manuscripts containing a description of novel methods and significant improvements to tried-and-tested basic research techniques related to cancer are welcomed. The manuscript has to provide readers with new tools and skills to improve their methodology and/or conduct their research.


• Review Articles including mini-review:  A timely, in-depth treatment of an issue. Review articles are generally solicited by the editors, but unsolicited materials are also considered. Authors intending to submit a review article must send an email in this regard to the Editor-in-Chief at journal@waocb.org with the subject line of “Request to send a review for APJCN”. The author must also explain his intent and present supporting documents of his/her competency in the subject. His request will be assessed and he/she will be notified of the results of the editorial assessment, and then he may proceed accordingly. Full-length reviews are accepted with word limits up to 5000 and 7000 words.


• Systematic Review and Meta-analysis:  A systematic review answers a defined research question by collecting and summarizing all empirical evidence that fits pre-specified eligibility criteria. A meta-analysis is the use of statistical methods to summarize the results of these studies.


• Editorials:  Opinions of recognized leaders in cancer specialties. Editorials are generally solicited by the Editor-in-Chief and are related to a manuscript on the same issue. The length should not exceed 2,400 words and no more than 20 references.


• Commentaries:  Presents a point of view of general interest not related to an article in the same issue of the APJCN.


• In Memoriam:  Memorialization of recently deceased individuals who have made notable contributions to the field of cancer prevention in the Asia Pacific region.


• Correspondence:  Letters to the Editor related to papers previously published in the APJCN. Letters must be submitted within six months of the online publication date of the article. The authors of the original publication will be given the opportunity to respond in the same issue of the journal. Letters and responses must not exceed 750 words in length. Financial associations or other potential conflicts of interest must be declared.


• Case series:  Reports of single cases will not be considered; however, the APJCN encourages large case series from Asian countries/populations (minorities, ethnicities, and populations with a particular attribute), in which not much data on cancer is available.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

All manuscripts must be submitted electronically through our website available at “Submit Paper” menu.

Submit text files only in .DOC or .DOCX file formats ― other file formats are not accepted.

Declaration of interest

All authors are requested to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest including any financial, personal or other relationships with other people or organizations within three years of beginning the submitted work that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived to influence, their work. Authors are required to email or upload any permission that may have been obtained for figures or tables, or any permission required for patient consent after they have received the official acceptance letter.

Simultaneous Submission and Online Posting

The APJCN will not consider manuscripts that are concurrently submitted elsewhere or have been published previously (including online publications). The presentation of research results at scientific conferences or in the abstract book of the conference does not constitute a previously published article. Accordingly, the corresponding author is requested to submit a separate cover letter word file (see the Cover letter illustration), together with their manuscript to APJCN.

Fees

The APJCN does not charge any submission, page, or color fees. 

APOCP’s Cancer Control Conviction

The APJCN will not consider any work that is funded directly or indirectly by tobacco companies or their subsidiaries. Any such work will be editorially rejected. Please note that this does not include work from organizations that sponsor research from funds won as part of tobacco settlements that are intended to promote research and care toward alleviating the suffering of individuals affected by tobacco products.

Cell Line Authentication

To ensure the highest standards of quality and accuracy, the APJCN strongly encourages the authentication of cell lines used in the research submitted to the journal. Manuscripts based on research using cell lines must include a statement addressing the following points in the Methods section of the manuscript:

• Where the cells are obtained from.


• Whether the cell lines have been tested and authenticated.


• The method by which the cells were tested.

If cells were obtained directly from a cell bank that performs cell line characterizations and had the passage in the user’s laboratory for fewer than 6 months after receipt or resuscitation, re-authorization is not required. In these cases, please include the method of characterization used by the cell bank. If the cell lines were obtained from an alternate source, authors must provide authentication of the origin and identity of the cells. This is best achieved by DNA (STR) profiling. The DNA profile should be cross-checked with the DNA profile of the donor tissue (in the case of a new cell line), or with the DNA profile of other continuous cell lines.

Clinical Trial Registry

The APJCN requires that all prospective, randomized, controlled trials be registered in a national or international registry such as (actr.org.au, clinicaltrials.gov, ISRCTN.org, umin.ac.jp/ctr/index/htm, and trialregister.nl)

Randomized Controlled Trials

Reports of Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) must clearly state the method of randomization. The title and abstract must specify that the manuscript is a report of randomized controlled trials. Authors reporting an RCT manuscript are advised to provide the CONSORT checklist as a supplemental file (download a copy of the CONSORT checklist).

Authorship Responsibility

The authors’ names listed in a manuscript indicate that each author has participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content. Authorship should be established based on the following criteria and responsibilities:

• Substantial contributions to conception and design, or analysis and interpretation of research.


• Participate critically in revising intellectual contents of the paper.


• Author has approved the final version of the paper.


• Accept responsibility for all aspects of the work.

Author status must carefully be reviewed prior to submitting a manuscript. Changes to the names on the author list (adding or deleting) may not be permitted or may require extra charges for corresponding authors.

Authors' Professional and Ethical Responsibilities

The APJCN reserves the right to forward any claim of scientific misconduct to the sponsoring or funding institution, or to other appropriate authorities for investigation ― the APJCN does not investigate or make determinations of misconduct. The author will be notified if the APJCN forwards any manuscript to the sponsoring or funding institution for such a claim.

Permission to use copyrighted materials

Use of previously published or copyrighted material reproduced from another source must be properly cited. The corresponding author is responsible for obtaining written permission from the appropriate authors and/or copyright holders to use previously published or copyrighted material. Signed permission statements from the copyright holder for both print and online reproduction, must be sent to the APJCN Editorial Office upon manuscript submission. Permission statements must also be obtained from at least one author when citing in press articles.

Observational Studies

Observational studies (cohort, case-control, or cross-sectional designs) must be reported according to the STROBE Statement. Authors reporting Observational studies are advised to provide the STOBE Statement as a supplemental file (download a copy of the STOBE statement).

Reports of Diagnostic Tests

Authors reporting diagnostic tests studies are advised to provide the STARD flow diagram and checklist as a supplemental file (download a STARD Follow Diagram).

Statistical Analysis

The following guidelines should be followed:

• Report the effective sample size for each study and each subgroup analysis.


• Describe the power analysis to justify the sample size if appropriate.


• Identify all statistical methods and verify the assumptions for all statistical tests.


• Provide alpha (the probability of a Type I error) for all statistical tests.


• Specify whether tests are one- or two-sided.


• Report the descriptive statistics (n, mean, median, and standard deviation) for all continuous variables.


• Adequately explain complex statistical procedures such a multivariate logistic regression and the Cox proportional hazard regression model, and verify the assumptions of each such procedure.


• Report the actual P-values and explain what is meant by statistical significance.

Classification and Staging

In reporting clinical staging of cancer UICC TNM Classification and Stage groupings should be used. If another staging system is stated, UICC TNM equivalent must also be provided. When a stage or classification is used in the manuscript, a reference citing the staging system must be provided.

Drugs and Devices

Use the generic drug name (or generic name followed by trade name in parentheses). Include manufacturer and their location (city and country) for drugs and devices.

Abbreviations

Use only standard abbreviations and spell out all abbreviations at first use in the text, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses.

Protection of Human and Animal Subjects

The APJCN endorses the principles governing the protection of human subjects in research embodied in the Declaration of Helsinki and expects that all investigations involving human subject have been performed in accordance with these principles.

Recommended standards

Use the following standard when appropriate to report data and information:

 

• Cancer Staging:  UICC TNM Classification of Malignant Tumors.


• Histological classification of tumors:  International Calcification of Disease Oncology (ICD-O) from the international disease calcification system of the World Health Organization.


• Drug naming:  Both generic and brand name.


• Chemical terms:  Naming and Indexing of Chemical Substances for Chemical Abstracts.


• Terms relating to diseases, operations, and procedures:  Use the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization.


• Units of measure:  Use Systéme International (SI) or metric system.

 

Cover Letter

A cover letter is a simple letter to the editor with the corresponding author’s signature. The cover letter contains two parts:  1) A statement that the work has not been published or is currently under review for publication in another journal, and 2) A very brief (not more than three sentences) explanation of the significance and novelty of the work and the problem that is being addressed.

PREPARATION OF MANUSCRIPT

Use of word processing software

It is important that the file is saved in the native format of the wordprocessor used.  The text should be in single-column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. The pages and line should be numbered using line spacing of 2. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. In particular, do not use the word processor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. Note that source files of figures, tables, and text graphics will be required whether or not you embed your figures in the text. See also the section on Electronic artwork.

To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check' functions of your word processor.

Highlights

Highlights are a short collection of bullet points that convey the core findings of the article. Highlights are optional and should be submitted in a separate editable file in the online submission system. Please use 'Highlights' in the file name and include 3 to 5 bullet points (maximum 85 characters, including spaces, per bullet point).

The highlight is parts of the article structure submitted as a supplementary discrete file to the APJCN.

Article structure

Prepare a single word file for the manuscript, consisting of the required sections by the order that is mentioned in the following:

Essential title page information:

• Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible.


• Author names and affiliations. Please clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s) of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, if available, the e-mail address of each author.


• Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication. Ensure that the e-mail address is given and that contact details are kept up to date by the corresponding author.


• Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.

The above-mentioned information should be provided on the first page of the manuscript.

Abstract

The abstract should not exceed 300 words limit. A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results, and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.

Keywords

Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 6 keywords, using American spelling and avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, 'and', 'of'). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes.

The main text of Article

Subdivision - unnumbered sections

Divide your article into clearly defined sections of “Introduction”, “Materials and Methods”, “Results” and “Discussion”, “conclusion”. A combined “Results and Discussion” section is often appropriate. Each subsection is given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.

Introduction: State the objectives of the work and provide an adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.

Material and methods: Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference: only relevant modifications should be described.

Results: Results should be clear and concise.

Discussion: This should explore the significance of the results of the work, not repeat them. Avoid extensive citations and discussion of published literature.

Conclusion: The main conclusions of the study may be presented in a short Conclusions section, which may stand alone or form a subsection of a Discussion or Results and Discussion section.

Acknowledgements

Collate acknowledgments in a separate section at the end of the article before the references. List here those individuals who provided help during the research (e.g., providing language help, writing assistance or proofreading the article, etc.). Moreover, list funding sources according to the following example:

“This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [grant numbers xxxx, yyyy]; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA [grant number zzzz]; and the United States Institute of Peace [grant number aaaa].

If no funding has been provided for the research, please include the following sentence:

“This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

For declaration of interest or conflict of interest, declare the following remark if there is no conflict of interest as the last sentence of acknowledgment.

“The authors declare no conflict of interest.”

References

It is very important to cite the references according to the journal rules and format. A manuscript that does not follow the reference citation of the journal will be returned to the author before undergoing any review or initial screening. APJCN uses VANCOUVER Style for citing and referencing

Referencing

APJCN uses Vancouver Style for reference citation.

In text citation:

Each source is assigned a unique number inside bracket like  [1].  Tthe first source cited would be [1], the second [2], and so on. A sentence that is citing several sources of research should be cited as [2, 4-6, 10].  If you want to name the author you can use author name with reference number in bracket such as  “Trump [2] showed that…  If more than one author, first author with et al such as “Rigan et al. [5] showed that a president could be ball”.

In reference list:

The reference list is organized according to numerical order. The number should be the first thing that appears in the reference list. The reference list should be indented from the second line onwards.

How to cite different sources in the reference list

1. Books

Citations for books with one author:

(Number) Last name, first initial. Title. Edition (if not the first edition of the book). City of publication: Publisher; Year.

For example:

(5) Davis, B. A History of Chocolate. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2013.

(5) Davis, B. A History of Chocolate. 3rd ed. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2013.

Citations for books with two or more authors:

If a book has two or more authors, only the first author's name should be listed in-text followed by 'et al.', meaning 'and others'. However, all authors should be listed in the reference list in the order they are credited in the original work.

(Number) Last name, first initial and Last name, first initial. Title. Edition (if not the first edition of the book). City of publication: Publisher; Year.

For example:

(4) Jones, F. and Hughes, S. Eating Out: A Definitive Restaurant Handbook. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2006.

(5) Evans, D., McDonald, F., and Jackson, T. Getting the best service. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2008.

Citations for a chapter in an edited book:

When citing a single chapter in a larger book, it is important to ensure that you add the page range (p.) that the chapter spans. When citing an individual chapter, you should also always include the edition of the book in the citation (you do not have to do this for other books unless it is not the first edition).

(Number) Last name, first initial. Chapter title. In: Editor's name/s (ed/s) Book Title. Edition. City of publication: Publisher; Year. Page/s.

For example:

(6) King, S. The best wines and where to find them. In: Loftus, E. (ed.) Fine Wine: A Guide, 1st ed. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2010. p. 28-46.

Citations for multiple books by the same author:

In the text, the author's texts can usually be differentiated by year. They should be listed in chronological order of publication. Where you are citing two works by the same author which were published in the same year, these should be labeled with 'a', 'b', 'c' and so on directly after the year.

(Number) Last name, first initial. (Year). Title. Edition (if not the first edition of the book). City of publication: Publisher.

For example:

(1) Brown, G. Mexican Food. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2011.
(2) Brown, G. Japanese Food. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2014.
(3) Brown, G. Chinese Food. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2015a.
(4) Brown, G. Italian Food. Nottingham: Delectable Publications; 2015b.

2. Articles

Citations for Print Journals:

(Number) Last name, First initial. Article Title. Journal name, Year; Volume(Issue), Page/s.

For example:

(10) Jenkins, O. Unusual Recipes, and Cantonese Cuisine. Culinary Research, 1996; Volume 5(8), p. 47-59.

Citations for Journal Articles accessed on a website or database:

In-text citations for an online journal article remain unchanged from the way you would cite a print article. The citation in the reference list does have a few differences, however. In Vancouver referencing, wherever possible you should supply the Digital Object Identifier (DOI) of the source you accessed. If no DOI is available, you should cite the URL of the source.

(Number) Last name, First initial. (Year). Article Title. Journal name, Volume (Issue), Page/s. Available from: URL or DOI. [Accessed: date].

For example:

(15) Jenkins, O. Unusual Recipes, and Cantonese Cuisine. Culinary Research, 1996;Volume 5(8), pp. 47-59. Available at: www.culinaryresearchjournal.com/jenkinsocanteonese [Accessed: 5 June 2016].

3. Online sources

When citing a website, it is important to ascertain authorship of the website – if it's an article on a website which is not a newspaper/magazine site or online journal, there may be an individual author; if not, the organization or website name would be credited with authorship.

(Number) Author/Source if no specific author. The title of web document/page. Available at: URL [Accessed date: Day/Month/Year].

For example:

(14) HealthTips. Superfoods and where to find them. Available at: www.healthtipsarticles.com/superfoodsandwheretofindthem [Accessed 20 June 2016].

Citations for emails:

(Number) Sender's last name, First initial. Email sent to: Recipient's Name. Date.

For example:

(8) James, D. Email sent to: Jeremy Renton. 9th July 2016.

Try not to use references that are not standard or references that are not registered in international registration systems such as non-English publications that do not provide an English citation format.

Tables:

Tables should be formatted as single-spaced on separate pages in the manuscript file. The following guidelines need to be adhered to in preparing tables:

Tables imported into the word-processing program from spreadsheet programs (e.g., Microsoft Excel), should be left in table format and not converted to text. Gridlines should be retained and the spreadsheet file should be provided as well.

Do not embed tables as graphic files.

Limit the number of tables to three and try to avoid redundancy of findings in different tables.

Cite all tables in the text. Number tables consecutively, using Arabic numerals, in the order cited in the text. The table number is followed by a brief descriptive title.

Include table number, ‘‘continued,’’ and table sub-headings on each page if a table exceeds one manuscript page.

Define all abbreviations used in the table in footnotes to the table.

Obtain written permission to reproduce the previously published tabular material. Credits for the reproduced work are included as a footnote to the table and must include author(s), title, either publisher and city/ country, or periodical name, volume, page, and year. Signed permission forms must be sent to the Editorial Office upon acceptance.

Figures:

The figures are added consecutively as the last section of the manuscript file. Each figure should be position at the beginning of separate pages along with figure legends. Figures with multiple parts should be labeled and referred to as (a), (b), (c), etc.

The following guidelines need to be adhered to in preparing figures and legends:

Submit only publication quality high-resolution figures.

The following resolutions are required: 1200 dpi for line art; 300 dpi for halftones/color (RGB); 600 dpi for combination halftones/color.

Figures should be sized to either one-column width (19 picas, 3.25 inches), or two-column width (40 picas, 6.75 inches), as appropriate.

Figures must be numbered in the text. Number all figures sequentially with Arabic numerals in the order cited in the text.

Provide double-spaced legends on a separate page to include the figure number and a brief description of the figure.

For typeface within figures, use 6-pt to 12-pt Times or Times New Roman font.

Figures with multiple parts should be labeled and referred to as (a), (b), (c), etc.

Obtain written permission to reproduce previously published figures. Credits for the reproduced work are included in the figure legend and must include author(s), title, either publisher’ city, and country or periodical name, volume, page, and year. Signed permission forms must be sent to the APJCN Editorial Office upon submission.

Moreover, the journal asks authors to upload source files of the figures, named as per cited in the text (Such as Fig. 1A, Fig. 2, etc) and it is preferred to upload all figures as a single ZIP file if possible.

Mask any patient identification in photographs; otherwise, a signed permission statement is required.

Appendices

If there is more than one appendix, they should be identified as A, B, etc. Formulae and equations in appendices should be given separate numbering: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2), etc.; in a subsequent appendix, Eq. (B.1) and so on. Similarly for tables and figures: Table A.1; Fig. A.1, etc.

Supplement and Supporting Data (SSD)

Supplement and supporting data (SSD) will be published and uploaded as a linkable file in the online version of the article. The supplementary data should be cited in the manuscript as following examples:

(Fig. 1S) or (Table. 1S). S stands for supplementary. Or for more details illustrations of the process see supplementary material.

SSD is mentioned in the article text and published online in its original format, along with the article. SSD will undergo peer review with the rest of the manuscript, but will not be copy-edited or changed from its original format. It must be relevant, but not integral to the paper. It may contain additional tables, data sets, figures, movie files, audio clips, 3D structures, and other related nonessential multimedia files. Like the manuscript accompanying it, it should be original and not previously published. If previously published, it must be submitted with the necessary permissions.