the International Journal of Biological Markers
ISSN 0393-6155 - E-ISSN 1724-6008

Editorial staff
Editor in Chief: Massimo Gion
Co-Editors: Maria Grazie Daidone - Robin Leake
Technical Editor: Simonetta Campori

Indexing
CURRENT CONTENTS/Clinical Medicine,
Biochemistry & Biophysics Citation IndexTM,
ISI Web of Science(c),
Science Citation Index-Expanded(c),
ISI Alerting Services(c),
Biochemistry & Biophysics Citation Index(c),
Biotechnology Citation Index(c),
EMBASE/Excerpta Medica,
INDEX MEDICUS/MEDLINE,
CURRENT CLINICAL CANCER,
Chemical Abstracts Service,
Biosis/Biological Abstracts(c)

Impact Factor 2009: 1,419
Circulation: 1500 copies
Frequency: quarterly

THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL of BIOLOGICAL MARKERS publishes original contributions, editorials and current reviews dealing with basic and applied research in the field of tumor markers.

The Journal accepts contributions on the following topics which are at present a rapidly growing field of basic and clinical research:

 

• CIRCULATING TUMOR MARKERS
  They include all those substances secreted by cancer cells or produced by the host as a reaction against the tumor, which can be an index of tumor growth.
• CELLULAR TUMOR MARKERS
  They include all nuclear, cytoplasmatic or membrane markers studied by means of histological or cytological investigations or molecular biology techniques, that can detect any difference between normal and cancer cells.
• CELL PROLIFERATION MARKERS
  They include all markers related to cell proliferation, studied by means of autoradiographic, flow cytometric or immunohistochemical approaches, which can characterize normal and cancer cells.
• HORMONE AND GROWTH FACTOR RECEPTORS The study of hormone and growth factor receptors as biological markers of cancer is an attempt to correlate the presence of these physiological agents of cell regulation with the natural history of the neoplasia and other prognostic factors.
• RADIOIMMUNODETECTION
  This is the application in vivo of the antibodies used in vitro to detect circulating tumor markers or cellular markers. The development of immunoscintigraphy originates from the basic research ot tumor markers and can be employed as a possible approach for the diagnosis of cancer.
• IMMUNOTHERAPY
  This field includes the therapeutical utilization of the same antibodies studied in experimental models and in the clinical application of immunoscintigraphy. By labelling the antibodies with radioisotopes or with drugs it is possible to use them as antitumor agents.
  All these topics are actively investigated today in their basic aspects and new reagents and technologies of cancer detection are being perfected. Their application in clinical practice allows a critical evaluation of the importance and the usefulness of this research. For these reasons, the subjects should be considered a very interesting area of discussion and development.