This November issue of Cancer Immunology Research comes near the end of what has been a challenging year for everyone. We hope that you are staying safe and healthy during this unprecedented time. We also are fully committed to continuing to support publishing operations while remaining flexible and supportive of the author, reviewer, and editor communities that we serve. Please let us know how Cancer Immunology Research can better support your needs as we work together in the coming months and years (e-mail us at cancerimmunolres@aacr.org).
In the 7 years since Cancer Immunology Research was launched, the field of cancer immunology has grown at a breathtaking pace. Six PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors and three CAR T–cell therapies have been approved by the FDA during that time, and the number of cancer types that can be effectively treated by at least one of these agents has increased steadily. One of the PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors also became the first cancer therapy approved for use in a tumor agnostic manner, signaling a convergence of innovation in the fields of cancer immunology and cancer genetics. With basic and translational cancer immunology research thriving, as highlighted by the increasing number of scientific conferences and publications dedicated to the subject, the field offers enormous potential for the future.
As the field of cancer immunology has grown, so too has Cancer Immunology Research. From 2014 to 2019, the number of original research articles submitted to the Journal more than quadrupled and the Impact Factor, while an imperfect measure of journal quality, nearly tripled. The Cancer Immunology Research 5-year Impact Factor—a longer-term measure of the influence of a journal than the standard Impact Factor—is 9.876. This Clarivate Analytics metric ranks the Journal, even at this young age, 11th among immunology journals and 17th among oncology journals.
The success of Cancer Immunology Research is the result of the hard work of many individuals, including those who serve as Deputy and Senior Editors and members of the Editorial Board. We want to acknowledge the immense time and effort put in by Glenn Dranoff, who was the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal and who ensured that it had a strong foundation. In 2015, the stewardship of the Journal passed to the two of us and Linda J. Miller, who served as Executive Editor. Linda's deep knowledge of the field and the publications industry enabled the Journal to flourish, and it has grown from strength to strength. Linda stepped down from her position over the summer to enjoy a well-earned retirement, but she has left an indelible mark and set a standard for quality. We are extremely grateful to her for her tireless efforts, and for her dedication to positioning Cancer Immunology Research both as a home for high-quality research articles in the field of cancer immunology and as a platform for educating the broader cancer research community about cancer immunology.
Moving forward, we enthusiastically welcome Karen Honey, the new Senior Associate Editor for the Journal. Karen is an experienced immunologist and scientific editor. Her graduate studies, postdoctoral research, and first editing position gave her a broad knowledge of the field of immunology, and her most recent position before taking on this role at Cancer Immunology Research provided her with in-depth understanding of the spectrum of cancer research. We know that she and her colleagues in the AACR office, particularly Adriana Benavides, will provide us with steadfast and capable support as we navigate the waters ahead. The vision that we and Karen have for Cancer Immunology Research is to build on the first 7 years of success at the Journal, further strengthen its impact, widen its readership, and make it a definitive voice in the field. As such, we remain committed to attracting and publishing the most innovative research across the spectrum of basic, translational, and clinical cancer immunology, as well as cutting-edge advances in cancer immunotherapy. We also intend to bolster our efforts to meet the educational goals of the Journal by identifying new print and online approaches to disseminating knowledge of basic immunology and the interplay of cancer and the immune system to the many researchers and clinicians who are eager to learn more about these critical scientific disciplines.
To maintain the principles held by the Journal since it was founded, the original research articles that we are seeking will be expected to move the field forward, by creating new knowledge, revealing new mechanisms, advancing our understanding of cancer immunology and cancer biology, and/or providing novel clinical insights. Importantly, these articles will continue to be required to be scientifically, experimentally, and statistically rigorous. We plan on retaining a high bar for scientific standard and reproducibility of data while honing our processes to provide the most efficient and fairest peer review possible. We are also redoubling our commitment to diversity and inclusion throughout the editorial process. We want to ensure that Cancer Immunology Research provides a forum for all cancer immunologists, cancer biologists, and clinical investigators, no matter their age, race, ethnicity, gender, or place of work. In this way, the Journal should catalyze multidisciplinary collaborations that deepen understanding of the immunologic mechanisms that influence cancer development and provide a resource for the use of these insights to drive clinical advances for patients with cancer.
This remains an exciting time for the field of cancer immunology research, and we will continue to work tirelessly to realize our goals for the Journal. We are always happy to discuss submission of any potential manuscripts that you think may fit the scope of the Journal. Also, we welcome your input about the Journal and your ideas for changes that could further enhance it. Together, we can make Cancer Immunology Research the definitive voice in our rich and vibrant field.
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