Cancer is a complex problem. The international effort to understand and control it involves clinicians trained in many branches of medicine and scientists from almost all of the biological disciplines and beyond. British Journal of Cancer (BJC) exists to serve the needs of this diverse community, providing a forum for communicating the very best cancer research to a broad audience. BJC works with a distinguished team of international experts to ensure the highest standards of selection and review. All relevant papers are carefully considered. Once accepted, papers are published rapidly and, at the editor's discretion, certain papers are accelerated for fast track publication.

Full research papers and short communications are published under five broad headings: clinical, epidemiology, molecular and cellular pathology, genetics and genomics and experimental therapeutics. BJC also publishes mini-reviews on current topics, some longer reviews, and book reviews, usually by editor's invitation. Editorials and letters to the editor on matters arising from published papers are also published at the editor's discretion.

The BJC is owned by Cancer Research UK, a charity dedicated to understanding the causes, prevention and treatment of cancer and to making sure that the best new treatments reach patients in the clinic as quickly as possible. The journal reflects these aims. It was founded more than fifty years ago and, from the start, its far-sighted mission was to encourage communication of the very best cancer research from laboratories and clinics in all countries. The breadth of its coverage, its editorial independence and it consistent high standards, have made BJC one of the world's premier general cancer journals. Its increasing popularity is reflected by a steadily rising impact factor.

BJC is cited in: EMBASE Excerpta Medica; Current Advances in Genetics and Molecular Biology; Current Contents; Medline; Index Medicus; Index to Scientific Reviews and Science Citation Index.

BJC is published twice monthly on behalf of Cancer Research UK (Registered Charity Number, 1089464) by Nature Publishing Group, a division of Macmillan Publishers Ltd.