Instructions for Authors

Aims and Scope
The Iranian Journal of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (IJPHO) is an international, scientific, peer-reviewed, quarterly, open access publication of the hematology and oncology research center of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Health Services in Yazd, Iran.
Publication of IJPHO benefits from copyright protection in accordance with the Universal Copyright Convention. All published articles will become the property of the IJPHO. The editor and publisher accept no responsibility for the statements expressed by the authors herein. Also they do not guarantee, warrant or endorse any product or service advertised in the journal.
IJPHO will publish high quality articles describing blood disorders and malignant diseases, including epidemiology, etiology, biology, molecular and clinical genetics, and diagnosis and treatment of all related disorders in the pediatrics group. The journal appreciates original papers, case reports, brief reports, editorial article, letter to the editor, short communication, and review articles on all aspects of pediatric hematology and oncology including but not limited to:
-Epidemiology, health technology assessment, social determinants of health, quality of life measurement, and blood & cancer control programs.
-Experimental systems and techniques including cell culture and animal models, genomic and proteomic approaches to the study of hematology and oncology.
-Diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of pediatric hematological and oncological disorders.
-Conditions associated with or resulting from hematological and oncological disorders.
-Ethical and legal issues surrounding hematological and oncological research.
 
Submission of manuscript
Submission is acceptable via Journal URL:
http://ijpho.ssu.ac.ir/form_send_article.php?&slct_pg_id=22&sid=1&slc_lang=en
All authors must sign the “submission form” agreement before the article can be processed. This transfer agreement enables IJPHO to protect the copyright material for the authors. The copyright transfer covers the exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute the article, including reprints, photographic reproductions, microform or any other reproductions of similar nature and translations, and includes the right to adapt the article for use in conjunction with computer system and programs, including reproduction or publication in machine-readable form and incorporation in retrieval systems. Authors are responsible for obtaining from the copyright holder permission to reproduce all figures for which copyright exists.
Always submit three paper copies of the entire manuscript and a computer-generated file that contains the manuscript in Microsoft Word, along with three sets of photographs, illustrations, diagrams etc. to the mentioned address. A covering letter identifying the person (full name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail) responsible for correspondence of the submitted article should accompany all manuscripts. Manuscripts are received with the understanding that they are not under simultaneous consideration by another publication. The authors’ transmittal letter must accompany the manuscript and contain these statements: “The manuscript has been seen and approved by all authors involved, and is neither being published nor being considered for publication elsewhere. The authors transfer copyright to the IJPHO.”
In case of electronic submission of the manuscript the authors must declare that it is being exclusively contributed to IJPHO.  The text should be submitted in Microsoft Word format as an attachment. The figures should be sent in a format of JPEG or GIF which will produce high quality images in the online edition of the journal.
 
Guidelines for preparation of manuscript
Manuscript length
Papers should be of a length appropriate for the amount of information they contain. Failure to restrict the length of manuscripts can negatively influence the editors’ decisions.
 
Style
Manuscripts should be written using clear and concise English. The manuscript should include: Title page; Ab­stract; Introduction; Ma­terials and Methods; Results; Discussion; Coclusion; Ac­knowl­edg­ment; Conflict of Interest; Funding; Ethical Considerations; Authors' Contributions and Ref­erences.
 
Manuscript format
The format of the IJPHO  manuscripts, including tables, references, and figure legends must be type-written, double-spaced, on one side of A4 paper, with margins of 2.5 cm. Pages should be numbered consecutively, beginning with the title page and continuing through the last page of type-written material. Avoid underlining.
 
Original articles should have the following format: 
Title page
The title page must contain (1) title of article, (2) correct name and highest academic degree of each author, (3) each author’s official academic and/or clinical title and affiliation, (4) name and address of the institution(s), (5) name, address, telephone number, e-mail and fax number of author to whom correspondence should be sent.
 
Abstract
All original articles must contain a structured abstract of not more than 300 words. The abstract should include: Background, Materials and Methods, Results, Conclusions and 3 to 5 Key words, chosen from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of index medicus (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html). They should therefore be specific and relevant to the paper. Authors need to be careful that the abstract reflects the content of the article accurately.
For Randomized Controlled Trials the method of randomization and primary outcome measure should be stated in the abstract.
 
Introduction
This should summarize the purpose and the rationale for the study. It should neither review the subject extensively nor should it have data or conclusions of the study.
 
Materials and Methods
This should include the study design and exact method or observation or experiment, definitions such as for diagnostic criteria, the population or patient samples, and laboratory and statistical methods. If an apparatus is used, its manufacturer’s name and country of origin should be given in parenthesis. If the method is established, give reference but if the method is new, give enough information so that another author is able to perform it. Statistical methods must be mentioned and specify any general computer program used.
 
Results
This should include the pertinent findings in a logical sequence with tables and figures as necessary. It must be presented in the form of text, tables and illustrations. The contents of the tables should not be all repeated in the text. Instead, a reference to the table number may be given. Long articles may need sub-headings within some sections (especially the results and discussion parts) to clarify their contents. Unnecessary overlap between tables, figures and text should be avoided.
 
Discussion
The discussion should emphasize the present findings and the variations or similarities with other work done in the field by other workers. Conclusions based on the findings, evidence from the literature that supports the conclusions, applicability of the conclusions, and implications for future research should be cited. The detailed data should not be repeated in the discussion again. Emphasize new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that come from them. It must be mentioned whether the hypothesis mentioned in the article is true, false or no conclusions can be derived.
 

Conclusion

The conclusions should be directly aligned with the research objectives and must be firmly supported by the study's findings. Avoid presenting statements or conclusions that are not sufficiently backed by the data. It is essential to differentiate between clinical and statistical significance and avoid expressing opinions on potential benefits or economic costs unless the manuscript contains relevant data and a comprehensive economic analysis. Avoid making claims of precedence or referencing incomplete work. New hypotheses can be introduced, but they must be explicitly identified as such. The conclusion should reflect the final outcomes reached by the author(s) and should not include results from other studies.

Acknowledgments
Any contributors who do not qualify for authorship should be recognized in the acknowledgements section. Additionally, it's important to acknowledge any financial or material support received. Personal acknowledgements should come before those for institutions or agencies.
 

Conflict of Interest

Any relationships or activities of the authors that could potentially influence their professional judgment during the research, writing, revision, or publication process should be transparently disclosed. Having such relationships does not necessarily imply a negative impact on the content. Readers should assess the relevance of these connections to the article.  Full disclosure shows a dedication to transparency and helps uphold trust in the scientific process. For more information, please see the 'Conflict of Interest' section on the ICMJE website. Authors are required to disclose any funding sources and potential conflicts of interest, such as receiving funds, fees, or owning stocks in organizations that could be impacted by the publication of their research.  

Funding
The source of any funding must be explicitly mentioned. If the study did not receive any financial support, it should be disclosed as follows: "This study did not receive any specific funding from public, commercial, or non-profit agencies."

Ethical Considerations
Ethical approval for studies involving human or animal subjects should be clearly stated at the end of the manuscript, just before the references. Authors must also confirm the ethical approval obtained from an institutional review board (IRB) or an independent ethics committee (IEC), preferably including the approval code number.

Authors' Contributions

All authors are completely responsible for the content of their article. Individuals who do not fulfill all four authorship criteria should not be credited as authors, but they can be acknowledged. The journal requests detailed information about each author’s specific contributions to avoid any ambiguity regarding participation in the study. Individuals who do not meet the authorship criteria but have contributed to the research may be acknowledged in the "Acknowledgment" section.

References
All manuscripts should be accompanied by relevant references. The reference should provide the following information as stated in the presented models as follows:
References should be numbered sequentially as they appear in the text according to the Vancouver style. When citing authors in the text, acknowledge only the first author where there are three or more authors, e.g. Williams et al (1) stated that.... Where there are two authors cite both, e.g. Jones and Smith (2) reported that.... Citations in the reference list are to be arranged by number in the following format including punctuation.
Journals: Author(s). Title of article. Title of journal (in italics with no full stops) Year; Volume number: Page numbers. (Abbreviations for journals used in the reference list should conform to Index Medicus.) e.g.: Stefanski H, Wedel L, Haller C, Pierpont ME, Perkins JL. Is there an association between bicuspid aortic valve and neuroblastoma? Pediatr Blood Cancer 2010; 55(2): 359-360.
Books: Author(s). Title: sub-title. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher; Year. e.g.: Orkin SH, Nathan DG, Ginsburg D, Thomas Look A, Fisher DE, Lux SE. Hematology of Infancy and Childhood. 7th ED. Philadelphia: Saunders Elsevier; 2009.
Chapter in a book: Author(s) of chapter. Title: sub-title of chapter. In: Author(s) (or editors) of the book. Title: sub-title of book. Place of publication: publisher; Year; page numbers.
Inclusive page numbers should be given for all references. Print surnames and initials of all authors when there are six or less. In the case of seven or more authors, the names of the first six authors followed by et al. should be listed.
References to papers accepted for publication, but not yet published, should be cited as such in the reference list.
The author is responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the references and for their correct textual citation.
 
Tables
Tables should be submitted in limited numbers with the captions placed above. Each table should be numbered consecutively with Roman numerals and typed single-spaced, including all headings. Verify tabular statistics to make sure they tally and match data cited in the text. Do not submit tables as pho­tograph.
 
Figures
Should be in limited numbers, with high quality art work and mounted on separate pages.
The cap­tions should be placed below. The same data should not be presented in tables, fig­ures and text, simultane­ously.
 
Clinical Trial Registration
From January 2010, all of the Clinical Trials in Iran must be registered in Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (www.irct.ir), in order to be considered for publication. This includes all of the clinical trials performed inside Iran even if they register in other registration sites. The clinical trials performed abroad, could be considered for publication, if they register in a registration site approved by WHO.
According to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) a clinical trial is any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes.
The registration number of the trial and the name of the trial registry must be mentioned at the end of the abstract.
 
Review articles should be prepared according to one of the following styles:

• Systematic reviews should be in the form of meta-analysis, meta-synthesis or without statistical analysis. These articles contain original articles’ parts.

• Non-systematic reviews should be written by experts who have at least one published article in the related field in references. Different parts of such articles include abstract, introduction, discussion and conclusion. They should contain at least 20 references.

                                                                                                                                                
Case Reports and Brief Reports: Both should include abstract, keywords, case presentation, discussion, acknowledgment, references, and 1-4 figures. Necessary documentations of the case(s) like pathology reports, laboratory test reports, and images should be included in the submission package. Brief reports should not have more than one figure and/or table. 
Illustrations
Three copies of all figures or photographs should be included with the submitted manuscript. Photographs must be high-contrast, glossy, black and white prints, unmounted and untrimmed, with preferred size of 10 × 15 cm. Color transparencies or photos will be accepted at the discretion of Editorial Board. Figure number, and name of senior author, should be written on the back of each illustration. Written permission must accompany any photograph in which the subject can be identified or any illustration that has been previously published. All illustrations must be numbered as cited in the text in consecutive numeric order.
 
Submission requirements 

·  Submit only the final version of the manuscript.

·  The file should be in Microsoft Word.

·Provide the printout of the manuscript that exactly matches the software file. File names must be clearly indicating the contents of each file.

•   Prepare art as camera-ready copy. Laser prints are accepted.

Page charges: There is no page charge for article submission, processing or publication in the IJPHO.
Reprint: Ten reprints will be provided free of charge.
The corresponding author will be supplied with 3 free issues.
 
Ethics of studies involving humans and animals
Ethical considerations must be addressed in the Materials and Methods section. 1) Please state that informed consent was obtained from all participants. 2) Include the name of the appropriate institutional review board that approved the project. 3) Indicate in the text that the maintenance and care of experimental animals complies with National Institutes of Health guidelines for the humane use of laboratory animals, or those of your institute.
 
Statistics
Inadequate or incorrect statistical analyses frequently cause rejection or delays in the review of manuscripts. Where appropriate, authors should seek advice from a professional statistician before the manuscript is submitted.
 
Ethics of scientific publishing
Submission of a paper implies that it reports unpublished work and that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. If previously published tables, illustrations or text are to be included, then this should be clearly indicated in the manuscript and the copyright holder's permission must be obtained. Previously published material can be cited in a later review or commentary article, but it must be indicated using quotation marks if necessary.

Plagiarsim
Plagiarism of text from a previously published manuscript by the same or another author is a serious publication offence. Small amounts of text may be used, but only where the source of the material quoted is clearly acknowledged. Fraudulent data or data stolen from other authors is also unethical and will be treated accordingly. Any alleged offence is considered initially by the Editorial Team by suitable and reliable software and in the case of proved plagiarism, the author(s) will be informed and the manuscript will be rejected.
 
Conflicts of interest
Authors must acknowledge and declare any sources of funding and potential conflicting interest, such as receiving funds or fees by, or holding stocks and shares in, an organization that may profit or lose through publication of your paper.
 
Copyright
The entire contents of IJPHO are protected under international copyrights. IJPHO publish articles under the terms of CC BY-NC 4.0 License.  This Journal is for noncommercial use. The user can read, copy, distribute, and build upon the material for non-commercial purposes. 
All articles published in RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol) are open access, which means the articles are freely available online for anyone to download and use the providing address to the individual authors. In RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol), as an open-access journal, authors sign a publishing agreement where they will have copyright but grant broad publishing and distribution rights to the publisher, including the right to publish the article on website and choose the end-user license under which readers can use and share the articles. Then RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol) provides the article's online access for using and sharing by readers.
  
Complaint Submission Process
Authors can report any violations of the journal's policies and ethical considerations by sending their complaints to Hogresearchcentergmail.com. Complaints may concern issues such as the article review process, article peer review, authorship matters,  conflicts of interest, and more.

Authorship Criteria and Contributions

According to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) guidelines, authorship should be limited to those who have made substantial contributions to the study’s conception, intellectual and experimental aspects, data analysis, and interpretation, as well as to the writing and revision of the manuscript. Each author should have been involved in the work to an extent that allows them to take responsibility for its content.

Authors must submit a signed IJPHO Authorship Form (handwritten signatures only; typed names are not accepted) with the initial submission. The IJPHO adheres to ICMJE standards, which specify that authors must fulfill all four of the following criteria:

1. Made significant contributions to the study's conception or design, or to data acquisition, analysis, or interpretation;
2. Participated in drafting the manuscript or revising it critically for intellectual content;
3. Approved the final version of the manuscript for publication;
4. Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work to ensure any concerns about accuracy or integrity are addressed.

All authors who meet the first criterion should be given the chance to participate in drafting, reviewing, and preparing the manuscript, unless they choose to opt-out at a later stage. Responsibility for identifying individuals who meet authorship criteria rests with the study’s investigators, not with the journal. In cases of authorship disputes, the journal may consult with the relevant institution or ethics committee.

Contributors who do not meet the authorship criteria should be acknowledged in the "Acknowledgments" section rather than listed as authors. The designated corresponding author, selected by the authors, is responsible for managing communication with the journal throughout the submission, review, and publication stages. They are expected to promptly address questions, criticisms, or requests regarding the article, both during and after publication.

Data Sharing

IJPHO encourages authors to make the data and supplementary materials supporting their research publicly available by depositing them in an appropriate repository. In line with IJPHO's policies, authors are required to include a "data availability statement" in their manuscript, which should clarify whether data is available, the reasons for any lack of availability, and provide a link to the data repository. Authors should also ensure that scripts and other materials used to generate the analyses in their paper are publicly archived. If sharing data would violate ethical or legal guidelines, authors are not obligated to share it and should explain the reason in their manuscript.

IJPHO is dedicated to publishing research that is impactful, reproducible, and based on valid data, ethical methods, and standards. We encourage authors to share all types of research data, including raw and processed data, software, algorithms, protocols, and materials. To assist authors, here are some standard templates for the "Data Availability Statement" section of their manuscript:

• "Data supporting the findings of this study are publicly available at [repository name] at http://doi.org/[doi], reference number [reference number]."
• "Data supporting the findings of this study are publicly available at [repository name] at [URL], reference number [reference number]."
• "Data supporting the findings of this study are available at [repository name] at [URL/DOI], reference number [reference number]. This data is derived from the following sources in the public domain: [source list and URL]."
• "Data supporting the findings of this study are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author."
• "Research data is not shared."

Exceptions to this policy may include cases where data sharing would violate privacy protections (such as with human or patient data), biosafety concerns, or restrictions due to third-party licensing agreements. Any confidential data must be anonymized, or proper consent must be obtained before sharing. Authors should consult with their institution's ethics committee if they are unsure about sharing data.

As of July 2018, all ICMJE member journals require a data-sharing plan for clinical trials that began enrolling participants after January 2019. If the data-sharing plan changes after registration, a separate statement must be submitted to the journal, along with the trial transcript, and the registration history should be updated.

Authors planning to conduct a secondary analysis using shared data should confirm that they are adhering to the terms under which the data was shared. They must also cite the data using its permanent and unique identifier to give credit to the original creators and facilitate future searches for the data.

Peer-Review Process
Submitted manuscripts are initially evaluated from an editorial perspective. If they meet basic editorial standards, they proceed to the peer-review stage. The manuscript is then reviewed by at least one internal and two external referees. Following this, the corresponding author will be notified of the reviewers' feedback, indicating whether the manuscript is accepted, rejected, or requires revisions.

Author self-archiving policy
RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol) allows authors to store copies of their articles on their web pages, institutional web pages, and other repositories, provided that they link to the article published in RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol), if possible. It is important to note that archive policies may differ from journal to journal, so it is important to follow the journal’s policy.
 
Abstract and Citation information
Abstract and citation information can be reused by authors anywhere and at any time, including social media platforms such as Facebook, blogs, and Twitter. If possible, authors should link to the article published in RANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY (Iran J Ped Hematol Oncol). The link should preferably include the Digital Object Identifier (DOI) found in the citation information about their article online.
 
 Review process

The IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGY and ONCOLOGY employs a rigorous double-blind peer review process for all submitted manuscripts, ensuring unbiased evaluation and maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity.
The review process follows these steps:
1. Initial Assessment: All submitted manuscripts are first evaluated from an editorial perspective to ensure they meet basic requirements.
2. Peer Review: Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment enter the peer-review process. Each manuscript is sent to at least three referees: one in-office and two out-of-office experts in the field.
3. Decision: Based on the referees' remarks, the editorial board will make one of the following decisions: accept, reject, or require modifications.
4. Notification: The corresponding author will be informed of the decision and provided with the referees' comments.
This comprehensive process helps maintain the quality and relevance of publications in our journal.

Revision: Papers may be returned to authors for modification of the scientific content and/or for language corrections. Revised paper and a letter listing point-for-point response to the reviewers must be submitted to the Editor and must be accompanied by a copy of the original version. Suggestion by the Editor about resubmission does not imply that a revised version will necessary be accepted. If a paper that is returned to the authors for modification is not resubmitted within two months it will be regarded as having been withdrawn and any revised version received subsequently will be treated as a new paper, and the date of receipt will be altered accordingly. Authors who resubmit a paper that has previously been rejected must provide the original manuscript and a letter explaining in detail how the paper has been modified. Accepted manuscripts become the property of IJPHO.

 
Responsibilities of authors
The authors are responsible for accuracy of all statements and data contained in the manuscript, accuracy of all references information, and for obtaining and submitting permission from the author and publisher of any previously published material included in the submitted manuscript. The corresponding author will receive an edited manuscript for “final author approval”.
 
Archiving Policy 
All Published articles will be archived on server of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, SCOPUS database, and National library and archives of Iran. 

Disposal of material
Once published, all copies of the manuscript, correspondence and artwork will be held for 1 year before disposal.
 
Submit manuscripts to:
The Editor-in-Chief,
Iranian Journal of Pediatric Hematology Oncology, Shahid Sadoughi Hospital, Ebne Sina Ave., Shahid Ghandi BLVD, Safaieeh, Yazd, Iran
Dr. Azam Sadat Hashemi
Associate Professor of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology
Postal Code: 8915887857
Telephone: 035-31834264
E- mail: hogresearchcentergmail.com, ijphossu.ac.ir