Get your European Journal of Cancer paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 11 August, 2026
Submitting to European Journal of Cancer goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the European Journal of Cancer guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to European Journal of Cancer. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the European Journal of Cancer journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the European Journal of Cancer guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the European Journal of Cancer guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through Editorial Manager.
| Element | European J Cancer requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Original Research (including Clinical Trials): Structured abstract with max 250 words, divided into sections (Introduction; Materials and Methods; Results; Discussion). Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Structured abstract with max 250 words, same format as Original Research. Review articles: Structured abstract following overall structure of original research articles, max 250 words. Current Perspectives: Unstructured abstract, max 250 words. Correspondence (Letters): No abstract required. Editorials: No abstract required |
| Main text | Original Research: max 4,000 words Review articles: max 6,000 words Current Perspectives: max 2,000 words Correspondence (Letters): max 1,000 words Editorials: max 1,500 words |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | 1 to 10 keywords required for indexing purposes. Keywords should be written in English. Authors should avoid keywords with multiple words and only use abbreviations if firmly established in the field |
| References | Numbered references in square brackets in text, following Vancouver style / ICMJE recommendations. References numbered in order of appearance. Any citation style accepted at initial submission, but Vancouver style will be applied at proof stage. Original Research limited to 40 references, Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses can have up to 80 references, Current Perspectives limited to 30 references |
| Peer review | Single anonymized review process (also known as single-blind peer review) |
| Submission | www.editorialmanager.com/EJC |
Read the European Journal of Cancer guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to European Journal of Cancer in under a page.
Skim two or three recent European J Cancer papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the European Journal of Cancer journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the European Journal of Cancer guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through Editorial Manager.