Virtual Library

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There are many academic career opportunities for the young oncologist. Examples of career tracks include basic, translational and clinical research, education and administration. Finding a niche, or an unique area of contribution, is essential. Key elements for success include: 1. Finding a mentor - you can have more than one, and s/he doesn't need to be at your institution; 2. Spending time in academic training, such as pursuing formal research methodology training, administration or education training (e.g. Masters of Public Health, Business Administration or Education, and higher); 3. Developing a team to support you - include clinical support, research support or the personnel you need to achieve your career goals; 4. Build strategic partnerships and build a collaborative network - for example if you're not a scientist and wish to do translational research, partner with scientists. Engage statisticians, methods experts, and remember that collaboration is a two-way street; 5. Challenge yourself to ask important questions in your area of study, and focus on key issues - aim high and trust yourself; 6. Be a mentor to junior trainees - this is your best investment; 7. Publish your work; 8. Apply for grants (and don't give up - you will get some!); 9. Focus on your areas of interest - your areas of priority may not be where you spend most of your time, but they should be; 10. Keep your passion for your career alive - have a life outside academic oncology, enjoy your work and keep it fun. 11. Take advantage of opportunities for development - presentation skills, teaching skills, grant writing, paper writing, research methods - essential for a successful career, and not taught in medical school. 12. If you pursue a career in clinical research, join a cooperative group. Accrual is one way that young investigators can get themselves noticed, in addition to new ideas.

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HOW TO GET YOUR PAPERS PUBLISHED? James R. Jett, M.D. Professor of Medicine National Jewish Health Denver, Colorado, USA 80206 Scientific writing is not something that comes easily to most of us. I personally struggled with my own publications for the first five years of my academic career. However, I advise young colleagues that they should aim for three to five publications per year. If this is accomplished, then at the end of ten years, you would have 30-50 publications on your curriculum vitae. This would be enough to result in promotion from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor in most institutions. How does one get started with publishing articles? Before starting, I would suggest that you read about publishing scientific articles. An excellent book that covers all aspects of scientific writing is “How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper” by Robert Day and Barbara Gastel. This book has individual chapters on preparing Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, and References. This text is an excellent source on “how to do it”. There are also chapters on writing review papers, editorials, book chapters, and writing for the public. Additional chapters address ethics in publication, use and misuse of English, use of abbreviations. Especially useful to authors whose first language is not English is the chapter, “How to Write Science in English as a Foreign Language”. Another good source, available on the internet, is the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) web site. Just type those initials into your web browser and review the “Uniform Requirements for Manuscript Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Preparing a Manuscript for Submission to a Biomedical Journal.” Major ethical issues include simultaneous submission to two journals, duplicate publication of the same data, plagiarism, and ghost writing. Violation of any of these issues will likely result in significant damage to your reputation and potential punishment by your institution. Violations often result in authors being banned from publishing in journals for several years. It can destroy your academic career. Needless to say, it will make your boss very unhappy! Before you submit a manuscript to any journal, it is mandatory that you review the “Instructions to Authors” for the specific journal. When I was Editor of Journal of Thoracic Oncology, one of the most common reasons for rejection was that authors did not follow the instructions. It is also advisable that you should read several articles, in the journal where you wish to publish, to be sure that you follow a similar style to articles that the journal has published. I also recommend searching for articles on the same topic in the journal for which you are planning the submission. If they have published several articles in the past year or two on this same topic, then you may want to consider a different journal, unless your article contains new and original information. The following are some of the most common reasons for articles to be rejected: Failure to read and follow instructions to authors Poor quality of English Non-structured Abstract Lack of novelty (me too articles) Dataset too small; flawed statistics The title and the abstract are extremely important. Often they are the only part of the article that is read. Readers decide, after reviewing these, if they wish to read the entire article. The words in the title should be carefully chosen. Pay careful attention to syntax. Avoid the temptation to be “too clever” in the title. Titles are used by indexing and abstracting services and help readers find your article in the morass of the medical literature. Write the abstract last. It should be a condensed version of the manuscript. Readers look at the abstract to see if they wish to read more. Sometimes an editor will read only the abstract and make a decision on rejection. I have done this many times. A poor abstract frequently means a poor manuscript. Most journals have a word limit for the abstract, frequently 250 words or fewer, and require a four-part structured abstract. Make sure that all of the numbers in the abstract match the numbers in the results section. This is a common error and reflects poorly on the author. Be concise! Remember that the abstract is your chance to get the attention of the reader (reviewer). Lastly, do not let a rejection discourage you. Pay careful attention to the critique that you have received and consider revising your article accordingly. Remember that the “peer review” process is not perfect. Reviewers can make mistakes and not recognize the merits of your manuscript. Revise your manuscript and send it to another journal. The majority of my own peer-reviewed publications were not accepted in the first journal where they were submitted. I have personally been rejected by many of the best medical journals. Do not take rejection personally. Try, try again!!!

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The 15[th] World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) is a highly interactive, collaborative, and intellectually enriching forum that focuses on the biology, diagnosis, and management of thoracic malignancies. For first-time attendees, the sheer scope and depth of the WCLC can be quite daunting. This educational session is designed for the young investigator or first time attendee. It aims to provide practical tools that will help the attendee navigate the 15[th] WCLC. This year, the Core Program Committee has organized a scientific program that includes more than 250 internationally renowned speakers and chairs participating in more than 100 sessions. The program can essentially be categorized as a component of either the Education Program or Scientific Program. The Education Program includes Invited Sessions wherein key faculty present state-of-the-art talks on relevant topics, as well as “Meet The Expert Sessions” that provide opportunities for attendees to directly interact with faculty . The Scientific Program includes cutting-edge and late-breaking research presented in oral, mini-oral, and poster formats. The Scientific Program also includes the Plenary Sessions, the Presidential Symposium (where the top rated abstracts are presented), and Highlights of the Day (where expert faculty summarize the past day’s most outstanding presentations), among others. There are also additional educational sessions such as Industry-Sponsored Symposia, a Patient Advocacy session, a Cochrane Workshop, and new to the 2013 meeting, a Chinese Alliance Against Lung Cancer session. First timers must carefully note that WCLC sessions can either be stand-alone (i.e, with no competing sessions such as the Plenary Sessions) or concurrent (e.g., oral and mini-abstract sessions). The organizers have developed a color-coded “session at a glance” diagram that clearly denotes each session’s schedule relative to others. (An online “virtual WCLC” will soon be developed to provide attendees access to concurrent sessions that they may miss because of a competing session.) There are also social events such as the Welcome Reception and the Gala Dinner that provide additional opportunities for first time attendees to interact with colleagues and faculty. It is thus anticipated that the 15[th] WCLC will provide young investigators and first time attendees a unique framework on which to build new collaborations that will ultimately have an impact on the future care of the patient with thoracic cancer.

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