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JCSM: growing together with cachexia and sarcopenia research

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: The international peer-reviewed ‘Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle’ (JCSM) is now already published for its 11th consecutive year. It is currently published six times per year showcasing articles across the spectrum of research in cachexia and sarcopenia. The journal is published by Wiley and in association with the ‘Society on Sarcopenia, Cachexia and Wasting Disorders’. Its aim is to promote and advance research in the historically neglected area of wasting disorders. Over recent years, the editor-in-chief Professor Stefan D. Anker and the co-editor-in-chief Professor Stephan von Haehling, with the help of the entire JCSM team, associate editors, and many authors and reviewers, have managed to steadily increase the journal's impact factor and the number of papers published each year (Figure 1). With their help, the latest 2020 impact factor has increased yet again to 12.910—which is the highest impact factor since JCSM started in 2010. In the 2020 Journal Citation Reports (Clarivate Analytics),1 the journal was ranked: 1/53 in the section ‘Geriatrics & Gerontology’ and 9/169 in the section ‘Medicine, General & Internal’. The impact factor of a journal is calculated by counting all citations in a given year towards articles published in the two preceding years, and divided by the number of original articles and reviews published in the two preceding years. Therefore, the rise in the impact factor shows that JCSM continues to publish research that is important and of interest to the scientific community. Over the years, the number of submitted articles has steadily increased (2016: 273 submissions; 2017: 352 submissions; 2018: 440 submissions; 2019: 589 submissions; and 2020: 739 submissions). In addition, the number of ‘letters to the editor’ and ‘reviews’ submitted to JCSM has also increased in the last few years—showing the wish of the community to discuss and summarize their new findings in a variety of formats. Original articles in JCSM are mainly about different wasting disorders such as sarcopenia, cachexia, malnourishment, anorexia, and lipolysis—often in connection with weight loss—but it also focuses on many different chronic illnesses: that is, heart failure, COPD, and cancer among many others. In line with those topics, the journal additionally takes a closer look at clinical and preclinical studies, researching for the source of future therapies using a wide array of technologies. To maintain the high quality of articles, many associate editors and even more reviewers are needed and are very important to maintain the high quality of the published articles. On average, 70% of all submissions are currently rejected. The most referenced article in JCSM so far is by von Haehling et al. from 2010—an editorial named: ‘Cachexia as a major underestimated and unmet medical need: facts and numbers’2 (Table 1)—having received 582 citations until August 2021.22 But also the top 20 cited papers from 2018–2020 (Tables 2–4) together have already been cited 2565 times until August 202122—averaging 43 citations per paper. Altogether, this clearly shows that cachexia and other wasting disorders have become an important field of research that many scientists are trying to better understand. It is very important to develop new therapies for wasting disorders that can one day help patients to maintain or even regain their bodyweight and strength. The authors of this manuscript certify that they comply with the principles of ethical publishing in the Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle 2019.81 All authors declare no conflict of interest.

Source: Journal of Cachexia Sarcopenia and Muscle

DOI: 10.1002/jcsm.12886

Authors: Ann‐Kathrin Fröhlich, Monika Diek, Corinna Denecke, Stephan von Haehling, Sara Hadzibegovic, Markus S. Anker