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Cancer Family Registries - Guidelines for Publication and Authorship Q & A Publication/Authorship Guidelines Accessing Data/Biospecimens Informatics Center CFRs Home

CFRs Guidelines for Publication and Authorship Publications Working Group Procedures I. Philosophy for Authorship A. Authorship B. Manuscript Review C. Manuscript Publication D. Conflicts II. Manuscripts Related to "Core" CFRs Activities III. Manuscripts Related to Research Utilizing the CFRs One of the most important products of the Breast/Ovarian and Colon Cancer CFRs is timely publications that describe them, their procedures and databases, and scientific findings that result from the use of the collected data. Publications are the main vehicle for disseminating findings to scientists and the public. Publications also are critical to the future funding of the CFRs and to the careers of those collecting the data. A large volume of high-quality publications is encouraged, and recognizing that many scientists will be involved in the collection and use of the data, the following guidelines for publication and authorship have been developed. The guidelines are not meant to inhibit publications and authorship; rather, they are meant to provide practical, flexible, and fair guidance for authorship and accuracy of information in what will usually be collaborative and multidisciplinary studies using CFRs data. This document provides guidelines for publications and authorship for two types of publications: manuscripts related to "Core" Breast/Ovarian CFRs activities (based on core funding), and manuscripts related to research utilizing the CFRs (approved by the appropriate Advisory and Steering Committees). [return to top] Publications Working Group Each CFRs system has a Publications Working Group that oversees all issues associated with publications. They propose recommendations to the appropriate CFRs Steering Committee for full committee vote as necessary, but otherwise represent the Steering Committees in matters dealing with publications. The working groups are not responsible for tasks for which the Steering Committees are charged, such as reviewing pilot proposals to the CFRs. Each CFRs site is represented in the appropriate CFRs working group. [return to top] Procedures A copy of every manuscript (site-specific or collaborative) shall be sent to the Publications Working Group Chair prior to submission to a journal for publication for review. The Chair will designate a "senior CFRs reviewer" based on expertise in the subject matter. The senior CFRs reviewer will be responsible for: reviewing the manuscript with the checklist (to be developed); informing the Informatics Center and Publications Working Group of the manuscript and, subsequently, providing updates on the status of the manuscript; providing feedback to the primary author within 15 days; and providing the Informatics Center with a copy of the final version submitted for publication. The Informatics Center will track publications in a field linked to the application database. The publications tracking database will be updated upon each submission. If the primary author does not notify the CFRs senior collaborating author about comments, acceptance, etc., from the journal, the appropriate CFRs Publications Working Group will make an inquiry after 6 months, notify the Informatics Center to update the database, and inform the CFRs senior collaborating author and NCI Program Officer of the status. [return to top] I. Philosophy for Authorship A. Authorship Modified from the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts as submitted to Biomedical Journals by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (Annals of Int Med, 1988; 108:258-304), authorship credit should be based on substantial contributions to: conception and design or analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, and final approval of the version to be published. Collection of data and scientific status also may be considered. Thus each CFRs site that provides data for the analysis should have at least one represented author, and the CFRs will be included in the author list regardless of whether analysis is site-specific or collaborative (multi-site). [A test to help determine whether CFRs should be included in the author list is "could the work have been completed without the CFRs?" If not, each CFRs site that provided data for the analysis should have at least one represented author and the CFRs should be listed in the author list.] The authors shall determine the order of authorship. In addition, because the CFRs are funded by the Federal Government, all publications shall acknowledge this support as follows: Breast/Ovarian CFRs: "This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health under RFA # CA-95-003 and through cooperative agreements with the Fox Chase Cancer Center Cancer, Huntsman Cancer Institute, Columbia University, Northern California Cancer Center, Cancer Care Ontario, and University of Melbourne." Colon CFRs: "This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health under RFA # CA-95-011 and through cooperative agreements with the Ontario Registry for Studies of Familial Colorectal Cancer, Colorectal Cancer Family Registry, Australian Colorectal Cancer Family Study, Hawaii Family Registry of Colon Cancer, Familial Colorectal Neoplasia Collaborative Group, Seattle Familial Colorectal Cancer Registry." Manuscripts related to research utilizing the CFRs (non-core CFR activities) should include the following disclaimer: "The content of this manuscript does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the National Cancer Institute or any of the collaborating centers in the CFRs, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government or the CFRs Centers." [return to top] B. Manuscript Review The senior CFRs reviewer will review the manuscript prior to presentation or submission to a journal for publication. The manuscript will be reviewed according to a checklist for such items as: appropriateness of title, authorship representation, consistency of results from identical analyses, and consistency and accuracy of CFRs functions and methods are correctly described. In addition, constructive input into the proposed manuscript may be provided. It is anticipated that this review will be completed within 15 days after submission to the senior author. [return to top] C. Manuscript Publication Upon publication or presentation, copies of all published manuscripts and abstracts of all presentations will be submitted to the Publications Working Group Chair. The Chair will distribute the published manuscript, abstract, or presentation to the appropriate Advisory and Steering Committees, and to the Informatics Center, which will add it to the list of publications related to the CFRs. [return to top] D. Conflicts The parties involved will resolve disputes regarding authorship of these manuscripts. The Publications Working Group may help resolve disputes, if requested. [return to top] II. Manuscripts Related to "Core" CFRs Activities This section relates to all manuscripts intended for publication or distribution and all abstracts intended for presentation at scientific meetings that result from "Core" activities of the CFRs. These activities include information such as those related to the development of the CFRs, data collection procedures and problems, confidentiality issues and policies, research instruments developed, descriptive statistics, etc. All these manuscripts result primarily from the core funding provided for the establishment of the CFRs and topics that have not been reviewed by the CFRs Advisory Committees. It is anticipated that the determination of manuscript topics, the principal authorship, and contributing authors will be determined by the relevant Publications Working Group. This determination should be made as early as possible to facilitate timely publication. All manuscripts intended for publication or distribution, as identified in II-1, will share authorship as outlined in Section I. Authorship order will be determined by the authors. The selection of the journal, scientific conference, or other forum to which the manuscript is submitted will be made by the authors. Prior to publication or presentation, all CFRs manuscripts will be submitted to the Publications Working Group Chair of the relevant CFRs for review by the group. This review is to ensure consistency in publication of information. In addition, the review will provide constructive input into the proposed manuscript. It is anticipated that this review will be completed within 15 days after submission. All manuscripts will reference the appropriate CFRs in the title. Because the CFRs are funded by the Federal Government, all publications shall acknowledge this support as follows: Breast/Ovarian CFRs: "This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health under RFA # CA-95-003 and through cooperative agreements with the Fox Chase Cancer Center Cancer, Huntsman Cancer Institute, Columbia University, Northern California Cancer Center, Cancer Care Ontario, and University of Melbourne." Colon CFRs: "This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health under RFA # CA-95-011 and through cooperative agreements with the Ontario Registry for Studies of Familial Colorectal Cancer, Colorectal Cancer Family Registry, Australian Colorectal Cancer Family Study, Hawaii Family Registry of Colon Cancer, Familial Colorectal Neoplasia Collaborative Group, and Seattle Familial Colorectal Cancer Registry." Disputes regarding the authorship or subject matter of these core publications shall be resolved by the appropriate Steering Committee. The above guidelines (except item #1) also apply to manuscripts that arise from activities of only one (or several) Center(s) in the CFRs, as long as the activities or information presented are primarily supported by CFRs cooperative agreements. [return to top] III. Manuscripts Related to Research Utilizing the CFRs This section relates to all manuscripts intended for publication or presentation resulting from research studies approved by the Advisory and Steering Committees of the CFRs and supported by funds not related to CFRs core activities. Primary ownership will reside with the group that received approval from the Steering Committee to undertake the analysis. It is assumed that at least one CFRs investigator is collaborating on the project and will share ownership of the manuscript. The following are assumed for all publications or presentations resulting from research studies based on pilot research utilizing the CFRs (non-core): The research proposal was reviewed and approved by the appropriate CFRs Steering Committee. The research was conducted in collaboration with one or more CFRs investigators. Publications and authorship for these manuscripts will be determined by the Principal Investigator(s) of the funded research. Determination of authorship should be established as early as possible to facilitate timely publications. All publications as identified in III-1 will share authorship as outlined in section I. The order of authorship will be determined by the authors. All manuscripts must reference CFRs in the title. Because the collection of the data in the CFRs is funded by the Federal Government, all manuscripts shall acknowledge this support as follows: "This work utilized data collected from the Breast Cancer Family Registries Studies (Breast CFRs), funded by the National Cancer Institute under RFA # CA-95-003 and through cooperative agreements with the Fox Chase Cancer Center, Huntsman Cancer Institute, Columbia University, Northern California Cancer Center, Cancer Care Ontario, and University of Melbourne." Or "This work utilized data collected from the Colon Cancer Family Registries Studies (Colon CFRs), funded by the National Cancer Institute under RFA # CA-96.011 and through cooperative agreements with the Ontario Registry for Studies of Familial Colorectal Cancer, Colorectal Cancer Family Registry, Australian Colorectal Cancer Family Study, Hawaii Family Registry of Colon Cancer, Familial Colorectal Neoplasia Collaborative Group, and Seattle Familial Colorectal Cancer Registry." The following disclaimer also will be included in all manuscripts: "The content of this manuscript does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the National Cancer Institute or any of the collaborating centers in the CFRs, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government or the CFRs Centers."

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