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Call for papers: Clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancer

Guest Editors

Pingan Ding, MD, Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, China 
Christiana Kartsonaki, DPhil, University of Oxford, UK
Xiaotao ‘Rony’ Zhang, MD, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, USA

Submission Status: Open   |   Submission Deadline: 11 December 2025 
 

BMC Medicine is calling for submissions to our Collection on clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancers, including esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, small intestine, and pancreatic cancers. Gastrointestinal cancers, including esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, small intestine, and pancreatic cancers, represent a significant global health burden, with rising incidence and mortality rates. Clinical trials play a crucial role in advancing our understanding of these malignancies, evaluating new therapeutic strategies, and improving patient outcomes. This Collection aims to gather innovative research that explores the design, implementation, and results of clinical trials focused on gastrointestinal cancers, providing insights into the latest advancements in treatment modalities and patient care. 

New Content ItemThis Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being. 

Meet the Guest Editors

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Pingan Ding, MD, Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, China

Dr Ding is a specialist in gastrointestinal oncology surgery at the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University. His work focuses on both basic and clinical research, aiming to advance the precision diagnosis of gastrointestinal cancers. Dr Ding has an expertise in liquid biopsy and the application of multimodal artificial intelligence to improve diagnostic accuracy and treatment outcomes. He is committed to pushing the boundaries of cancer care through innovative research and interdisciplinary collaboration, contributing to the field of gastrointestinal oncology.

Christiana Kartsonaki, DPhil, University of Oxford, UK

Dr Kartsonaki is an Associate Professor at the Clinical Trial Service Unit & Epidemiological Studies Unit (CTSU) in the Nuffield Department of Population Health of the University of Oxford. She is working on the epidemiology of cancer and other diseases, as well as on related statistical methods. Her interests include investigating the associations of risk factors, genetics, and biomarkers such as metabolomics and proteomics with various types of cancer, risk prediction, the design of case-subcohort and other studies.

Xiaotao ‘Rony’ Zhang, MD, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, USA

Dr Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Liver Diseases, Department of Medicine and Institute for Translational Epidemiology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, with expertise in the microbiome, nutritional epidemiology, and cancer epidemiology. His research and experience are primarily focused on nutrition, the microbiome, liver diseases, and cancer prevention. He hopes to unravel risk factors and mechanisms to inform the development of new preventive interventions and clinical strategies.

About the Collection

BMC Medicine is calling for submissions to our Collection on clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancers, including esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, small intestine, and pancreatic cancers. Gastrointestinal cancers, including esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, small intestine, and pancreatic cancers, represent a significant global health burden, with rising incidence and mortality rates. Clinical trials play a crucial role in advancing our understanding of these malignancies, evaluating new therapeutic strategies, and improving patient outcomes. This Collection aims to gather innovative research that explores the design, implementation, and results of clinical trials focused on gastrointestinal cancers, providing insights into the latest advancements in treatment modalities and patient care. 

Advancing our collective understanding of clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancer is essential for several reasons. First, it allows for the identification of effective treatment options that can significantly improve survival rates and quality of life for patients. Recent advances, such as targeted therapies and immunotherapies, have shown promise in clinical settings, leading to improved outcomes for specific cancer types. Furthermore, understanding the challenges and successes of clinical trials can inform future research directions and enhance collaboration among researchers, clinicians, and patients. 

Looking ahead, continued research in this area holds the potential for groundbreaking discoveries that could revolutionize the treatment landscape for gastrointestinal cancers. Innovations in trial design, such as adaptive trials and the incorporation of biomarker-driven approaches, may lead to more personalized treatment strategies. Additionally, advancements in technology, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, could enhance patient recruitment, data analysis, and outcome prediction, ultimately improving the efficiency and effectiveness of clinical trials.  

Topics of interest include but are not limited to: 

- Innovative therapies for esophageal cancer 

- Clinical trials in gastric cancer treatment 

- Advancing clinical trials in colorectal cancer treatment 

- Targeted therapies for liver cancer 

- Immunotherapy in pancreatic cancer trials 

- Screening and prevention trials

All manuscripts submitted to this journal, including those submitted to collections and special issues, are assessed in line with our editorial policies and the journal’s peer review process. Reviewers and editors are required to declare competing interests and can be excluded from the peer review process if a competing interest exists.

This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG: 3 (Good Health and Well-being). 

Image credit: © 7activestudio / stock.adobe.com

  1. The clinical use of indocyanine green (ICG) in laparoscopic radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer remains at an exploratory stage.

    Authors: Qing Zhong, Dong Wu, Zhi-yu Liu, Zhi-xin Shang-guan, Ze-ning Huang, Zhi-quan Zhang, Tao-yuan Qiu, Jun-yu Chen, Yi-ming Jiang, Guang-tan Lin, Yi-hui Tang, Ping Li, Jian-Wei Xie, Jian-Xian Lin, Chao-Hui Zheng, Qi-Yue Chen…
    Citation: BMC Medicine 2025 23:497
    Content type: Research Published on:

  2. Peritoneal metastasis (PM) after radical surgery is an important cause of treatment failure in colorectal cancer (CRC). Intraoperative intraperitoneal perfusion chemotherapy may be an effective method for prev...

    Authors: Hao Su, Rui Zhang, Yunfeng Li, Yanke Li, Wei Pei, Zhigang Jie, Zhimin Liu, Meijin Huang, Jing Zhuang, Qian Jiang, Ming Xie, Guiying Wang, Wenbin Zhang, Ming Liu, Jiansi Chen, Zejun Wang…
    Citation: BMC Medicine 2025 23:336
    Content type: Research Published on:

Submission Guidelines

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BMC Medicine encourages submissions of front matter articles and original research, including clinical trials (phase I-III, randomized-controlled, either positive or negative trials), epidemiological studies (retrospective or prospective), systematic reviews and meta-analyses, -omics, medical imaging, genomics studies and translational research. Before submitting your manuscript, please ensure you have read our submission guidelines.

Articles for this Collection should be submitted via our submission system, Snapp. During the submission process you will be asked whether you are submitting to a Collection; please select "Clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancer" from the dropdown menu.

Articles will undergo the journal’s standard peer-review process and are subject to all of the journal’s standard policies. Articles will be added to the Collection as they are published.

The Editors have no competing interests with the submissions which they handle through the peer review process. The peer review of any submissions for which the Editors have competing interests is handled by another Editorial Board Member who has no competing interests.