An editor's considerations in publishing industry-sponsored studies

The fundamental responsibility of a journal editor is to assure that studies accepted for publication provide rigorous original scientific information and reviews that are considered important to the readership. The fundamental requirements of such reports from an editor's perspective include objectivity and transparency in each of the study design, implementation of investigation methods, acquisition of data, inclusive analysis and interpretation of results, appropriate application of statistical methods, presentation of outcomes in the context of a balanced and comprehensive review of relevant literature, and meaningful conclusions. In proceeding on these presumptions, editors then have the responsibility of obtaining rigorous, objective, and constructive reviews of these reports so that they can make an unbiased decision regarding their disposition. The fundamental objective in this is to enhance the ultimate scientific validity and value of the work if and when it is accepted for publication. Guidelines have been advanced by several organizations to identify how such editorial responsibilities can be fulfilled. These guidelines also pertain to investigators, authors, and sponsors of the studies, which the various reports and reviews describe. The present article reviews these guidelines as they relate to both industry-sponsored and investigator-initiated investigations and as relevant to the variety of reports that a scientific/medical journal such as Urologic Oncology: Seminars and Original Investigations receives for publication.