In 2024, many GS authors make outstanding contributions to our journal. Their articles published with us have received very well feedback in the field and stimulate a lot of discussions and new insights among the peers.

Hereby, we would like to highlight some of our outstanding authors who have been making immense efforts in their research fields, with a brief interview of their unique perspective and insightful view as authors.

Outstanding Authors (2024)

Brendan C. Stack Jr, Southern Illinois University, USA

Mateusz Jagielski, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Poland

Lucas Ribeiro Tenório, Santa Casa de São Paulo School of Medical Science, Brazil

Shivanchan Rajmohan, Frimley Park Hospital, UK

Marta Araujo-Castro, The Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Spain

Outstanding Author

Brendan C. Stack Jr

Dr. Brendan C. Stack, Jr., M.D., FACS, FACE, is the former Professor and Inaugural Chairman of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, IL. He was editor of Medical and Surgical Treatment of Parathyroid Diseases - An evidence-based approach, 2016, Neck Dissection, 2018, and Matrix Head and Neck Reconstruction: A defect based and scalable atlas for the management of oncologic and traumatic defects, 2023. He has presented at over 350 meetings regionally, nationally, and internationally. He collaborated on grants from the NIH, NSF and other organizations. Dr. Stack has appeared on or been cited by local and national media numerous times. He served on the editorial boards of several journals. He has served on review panels for the National Institutes of Health and review agencies for several nations. He is listed in “Best Doctors” of America, “Guide to America’s Top Surgeons”, “Guide to America’s Top Physicians”, Castle and Connolly Top Doctors and Cancer Specialists, and “Top Thyroid Doctors”. Connect with Dr. Stack on LinkedIn and Facebook.

In Dr. Stack’s view, an excellent research paper is hypothesis-driven. In this era of data science, artificial intelligence (AI), etc., he believes we must resist the temptation to do database “trawling” but start with a hypothesis from a clinical observation, etc., and proceed forward. Hypothesis-driven research is efficient and will eliminate the “noise” that increasingly present in contemporary peer-reviewed research. Clarity of hypothesis and methods, transparency in graphical presentation of data, and appropriate and relevant conclusions of clinical and/or scientific relevance are keys to quality scholarly work.

Dr. Stack indicates that honesty and integrity are two key things in constructing an academic paper. He explains, “These seem obvious but should never be taken for granted. We are observing an increased frequency of lapses in these areas requiring corrections. Many scientific errors go unrecognized and remain buried in the literature to fade into oblivion or possibly adversely affect meta-analyses and AI. Honesty and Integrity should be the loadstars of a scholarly career.”

Data sharing has been prevalent in scientific writing in recent years and, to Dr. Stack, has been a great advance in transparency. It allows for repetition of experiments and/or analysis, which is a key component of the scientific method. He points out that the next advance in this area will be centralization and uniformity in reporting data and peer review of shared data collection and its distribution to investigators.

(by Brad Li, Alisa Lu)

Mateusz Jagielski

Mateusz Jagielski, MD, PhD, is a Professor of Medicine, specialist in general surgery, and interventional gastroenterological endoscopist. He is the Professor at Department of General, Gastroenterological and Oncological Surgery, Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland. He is an expert in advanced gastrointestinal endoscopy, particularly endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), as well as interventional endoscopic ultrasound (EUS). He specializes in minimally invasive treatment of consequences and complications of pancreatitis, especially of pancreatic and peripancreatic fluid collections. His area of interest also covers use of endoscopic techniques of surgical complications and cancers of gastrointestinal tract, especially colorectal cancer. He is a member of many scientific medical societies and the author of numerous publications in internationally renowned medical journals. During his medical career, he was repeatedly awarded by many scientific societies for his various papers. Connect with Dr. Jagielski on LinkedIn and learn more about his work on ResearchGate and MedTube.

To Dr. Jagielski, as a practicing surgeon, the main problem he encounters in academic writing is the lack of time to write. He adds, “I go back to my studies, and when I have more time, I would dedicate to academic writing. When academic writing is a passion, there is no obstacle one cannot overcome. This is very true in my case.”

In Dr. Jagielski’s view, the basis of every success is teamwork. Every stage of a study should be discussed by all team members. Selection of appropriate evidence for synthesis and analysis, therefore, lays in competence of biostatistician, who should be a member of every research team. As a leader of the research team, he believes it is his duty to develop a research concept and to conduct it. In medical science, where a human being is a study object, especially in surgery, conducting of the research (performing operation) is crucial for the success.

Lastly, Dr. Jagielski emphasizes that disclosing Conflict of Interest (COI) is pivotal for the credibility of medical studies. COI may often influence the results of the study. In a perfect world, every author of a medical publication should not have any COI.

(by Brad Li, Alisa Lu)

Lucas Ribeiro Tenório

Dr. Lucas Ribeiro Tenório, MD, MS, is a thirty-five-year-old Brazilian Head and Neck Surgeon and an assistant at Santa Casa de São Paulo School of Medical Science. He holds a Master's degree in surgery and is currently pursuing a PhD in the Health Sciences program at Santa Casa de São Paulo School of Medical Science. Following the completion of his medical residency program, he spent three months at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, under the mentorship of Dr. Ralph Tuffano and Dr. Jonathon Russell, where he developed an interest in Transoral Neck Surgery. He has conducted research on various topics in Head and Neck Surgery, including Tracheostomy, quality of life, and Larynx cancer. His current research focuses on minimally invasive surgery, specifically Transoral Neck Surgery, including TOETVA, TOEPVA, TEVAS, and robotic head and neck surgery. Connect with Dr. Tenório on X and Instagram.

Dr. Tenório thinks a good academic paper should have the following features: 1) a robust although concise introduction; 2) a very well-defined objective; 3) a clear methodology, which has to be followed step by step. The reader has to understand what the authors did during the research and 4) an inclusive discussion. To discuss the literature and the article findings, the authors should do a good literature review, including the most important publications regarding the same theme. He points out that it is important to open the mind to read publications not only from the great centers.

In Dr. Tenório’s view, during the preparation of a paper, authors should follow a methodology to construct the article. He recommends using the PECOT strategy for research question formulation (P – Population | E – Exposure | C – Comparator | O – Outcome | T – Time).

“I chose to publish in GS due to the general quality of the Journal. I have been reading high-quality publications in GS. GS presents an open access publication process which gives more reach to our article,” says Dr. Tenório.

(by Brad Li, Alisa Lu)

Shivanchan Rajmohan

Dr. Shivanchan Rajmohan graduated from Imperial College London with triple distinction and holds a first-class honors degree in Pharmacology. He is a surgical trainee in the UK, a member of the Royal College of Surgeons (England), and an associate fellow of the Higher Education Academy. His interests not only lie within Head and Neck Otolaryngology but also in promoting transparency in reporting of surgical research, and he was part of the team that developed the SCARE and PROCESS guidelines, winning the Harold Ellis Prize.

In Dr. Rajmohan’s opinion, a good author will demonstrate consistency in their research quality. This is achieved through clinically meaningful research, which has the potential to introduce novel concepts and techniques but also challenge existing standards with the aim of optimizing patient care. He thinks honesty, intellectual curiosity, integrity, and effective expression underpin a credible author.

Dr. Rajmohan alerts that bias can enter research at various stages – during the initial planning stages, data collection, and analysis/publication. The most important step in avoiding bias is recognizing the sources of bias and where it can enter the research process. Once this has been appreciated, steps to mitigate such bias should be implemented to maximize the internal validity of a study. Devising and publishing protocols for projects is helpful in planning and will enable authors to identify possible sources of bias.

“As a clinician who frequently utilizes evidence-based medicine to inform my clinical practice, I believe it is important to contribute to the scientific literature in some way. Rarer pathologies with scarce literature rely upon clinicians sharing their experiences to improve knowledge of pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment. Personally, conducting research that may enhance the care of my patients really motivates me. Working as a team enables the workload to be distributed and is an excellent way to develop new connections with colleagues who share the same enthusiasm,” says Dr. Rajmohan.

(by Brad Li, Alisa Lu)

Marta Araujo-Castro

Marta Araujo-Castro, MD, PhD, is the coordinator of the Neuroendocrinology & Adrenal Unit of the Endocrinology and Nutrition Department of the Ramón y Cajal University Hospital in Madrid, Spain. Her clinical focus and research is on pituitary and adrenal gland disorders and neuroendocrine tumors. She is the principal investigator and coordinator of the SPAIN-ALDO Register of the Spanish Society of Endocrinology & Nutrition (SEEN) and of the PHEO-PARA-RISK Study of the SEEN. Dr. Araujo-Castro is the coordinator of the adrenal diseases group of the SEEN, a member of the scientific board of the working group of Aldosterone Producing Adenomas (APA) of ENSAT and the principal investigator of the group of Endocrine-Metabolic, Digestive and Nutrition Surgery of the Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS). In addition, she is a member of the SEEN, the European Society of Endocrinology (ESE), the Endocrine Society, the Spanish Group of Neuroendocrine Tumors (GETNE), the European Network for the Study of Adrenal Tumors (ENSAT) and the European Society of Hypertension (ESH). She actively participates in several national and international congresses with presentations related to adrenal and pituitary pathology. Moreover, Dr. Araujo-Castro is a professor of the master’s degree in Endocrine Oncology Pathology at TECH University; she holds the title of master’s degree in research Methodology in Health Sciences of the Laboratory of Applied Statistics of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) (Spain) and the Diploma in Statistics in Health Sciences of the UAB. A list of her research can be found here.

In Dr. Araujo-Castro’s view, authors need academic writing to promote their careers and to give visibility to their research projects. Besides, researchers can continue advancing in the knowledge of the different pathologies and offer better care to their patients through academic writing. She thinks that one of the most important qualities an author should possess is to be careful and patient with studies, analyze data very carefully and be critical of one’s results.

“It is true that sparing time for academic writing is a difficult task since being a scientist and a doctor at the same time requires a long time. However, I think that if you enjoy your job and try to find time to do both things, you can achieve it. The most important thing is to have a correct organization and be able to separate job and personal life since both are very important,” Dr. Araujo-Castro says.

(by Sasa Zhu, Brad Li)