AAMDWritingCompetition
GuidelinesforSubmission
Authors


AllinterestedauthorswillfindinformationonmanuscriptsubmissionontheAAMDwebsite:
http://medicaldosimetry.org/.Thecommitteeco‐chairsmustverifythatallauthorsare
membersingoodstandingorhaveapplicationsinprogress.Allstudentauthorsmustbea
memberoftheAAMDandmustsubmitaletterfromtheirprogramdirectorstatingtheir
studentstatus.AllauthorswillreceiveconfirmationoftheirabstractsubmissionbyApril1st.
AllmanuscriptsubmissionsareduebyMay1stofthecurrentyear.
CriteriaforjudgingpapersenteredforMedicalDosimetryWritingCompetitionisnot
thesameasthestandardforpeerreviewforMedicalDosimetryJournal.Therefore,
acceptancefortheMedicalDosimetryWritingCompetitiondoesnotguarantee
publicationintheMedicalDosimetryJournal.
AbstractandReleaseForms

Potentialauthorsmustsubmitanabstractsubmissionformandareleaseform(Appendix2)
whichmustbereadandsignedbytheprimaryauthor(AAMDMember)releasingsubmitted
manuscriptsasthepropertyoftheAAMD.Thesedocumentsmustbesubmittednolaterthan
April1stofthecurrentyear.
ProcessforSubmissionofManuscriptsfortheAAMDWritingCompetition

ManuscriptsmaybesubmittedviatheMedicalDosimetryJournalwebsite
http://ees.elsevier.com/meddos.Authorsarerequestedtosubmitthetext,tables,and
artworkinelectronicform.Authorsarerequestedtoincludeacoverletter(saveasaseparate
fileforupload),manuscript,tables,andfigures,aswellasanyancillarymaterials.Pleasenote
thataneditablefileisneededforproductionpurposes,uploadtextfilesasWord(.doc)files
notasPDFs.Filesshouldbelabeledwithappropriateanddescriptivefilenames(e.g.,
SmithText.doc,Fig1.tif,Table3.doc).Uploadtext,tables,andgraphics(figures)asseparate
files(multiplefigurefilescanbecompressedintoazipfileanduploadedinonestep;the
systemwillthenunpackthefilesandpromptyoutonameeachfigure).Completeinstructions
forelectronicartworksubmissioncanbefoundatwww.authors.elsevier.com/artwork.
ClassificationofManuscripts
 CompletedmanuscriptsshouldbesubmittedviatheMedicalDosimetryJournalwebsite:
http://ees.elsevier.com/meddos,undertheappropriatemanuscriptclassification,i.e.
researchpaper,casestudy,etc…(SeeMEDDOSinstructionstoauthors).
AccompanyingLetter

AnaccompanyinglettermustbesubmittedtotheMedicalDosimetryJournalwebsite:
http://ees.elsevier.com/meddos,indicatingtheauthor’sintentinparticipatingintheAAMD
WritingCompetition.Authorsshouldstatethatthemanuscripthasnotbeennorwillbe
submittedelsewhereforpublication.
OnlineSubmissionInstructions
1. GotoAAMDwebsite‐http://medicaldosimetry.org/
2. Clickonpublications‐journal,www.medos.org‐authorinformation‐Clickon
http://ees.elsevier.com/meddos
3. Attopofpageselect‐submitpaper
4. Enteryour
a. Username
b. Password
5. AuthorLogin
6. SubmitNewManuscript‐ChooseArticleType
a. ResearchPaper‐AResearchArticleisareportoforiginalexperimentalortheoretical
research.Authorsshouldkeepinmindthatattentiontoclarityandconciseness
facilitatesthereviewprocessandalsotheimpactofthepublishedarticle.Limit:10
journalpages.
b. ReviewArticle‐AReviewArticleisanauthoritativereviewofasubjectimportantto
thefieldofradiationoncology.Itmaybeeitherinvitedorproffered.Ineithercase,the
reviewprocesswillbeemployed.Limit:10journalpages.
c. LettertotheEditor‐ALettertotheEditorisabriefresponsetoapublishedarticleof
generalinteresttoreaders.Itmaybeeitherinvitedorproffered.Lettermustreference
MedicalDosimetryarticlesnoolderthantwoissuesfromthelastpublishedvolume.
Limit:1journalpage.
d. Editorial
e. AAMDWritingCompetition‐donotselect.
f. CaseStudy/TechnicalNote‐ACaseStudyisaconcisedescriptionofatechnique,
procedure,clinicalimplementation,orclinicalpatient‐relatedcomplicationofrelevance
tothepracticeofmedicaldosimetry.Appropriateforthisarticletypeare"tricks‐of‐the‐
trade,"helpfulhintstosolveaspecificproblem,or"how‐tos"onapplicationtoclinical
practice.Limit:3journalpages.ATechnicalNoteisabriefdescriptionofaspecificnew
development,procedure,oruseofadevicethatoffersasolutiontoacurrentspecific
problemandhassufficientrelevancetobeusefultomanyreadersofMedicalDosimetry.
Limit:3journalpages.
g. ClickNext
7. UnderFullTitle
a. InboxtypeTitle
b. Selectnext
8. UnderAdd/Edit/RemoveAuthor
a. AddAuthors
b. ClickNext
9. Keywords‐Typekeywordsinthebox
10. SelectClassification
a. 10QualityAssurance
b. 20Imaging
c. 30CaseStudy
d. 40TechnicalInnovationDosimetry
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
e. 50TechnicalInnovationPhysics
f. 60BasicDosimetry
g. 70Calculationalgorithms
1. Selectbyplacingcheckinthebox
2. Close
Entercomments
a. Typeorcopyandpastethedescription
b. ClickNext
UnderArtworkInstructionsReadinstructions.RequiresManuscriptandCover
Letter.IfyouhaveotherSelectionstobeattachedthenaddthem.
Filesondropdown
a. Selectmanuscript(Itisalsorequiredthatyouselectcoverlettertheothersarenot
necessary)
b. Descriptionboxwillnowshowmanuscript
c. Clickthebrowsebutton
d. SelectthepretypeddocumenttypedinArialfont
e. ClickonAttachThisFilebutton
f. Waitforokwindow
g. Boxnexttobrowsewillappearempty
h. Scrolltolowerpage,inthetabletofarrightclickdownload
i. Clicknext
ClickBuildMyPDFForApproval
ClicktheSubmissionswaitingforAuthor’sApproval
a. UnderEthicsinPublishing‐ClickinboxnexttoIaccept
b. WaitforActionLinkstoappearinfarleftoftable
c. SelectActionLinks
d. SelectViewsubmission
e. SelectApproveSubmission
f. Windowasksareyousureyouwanttoapprovesubmission
g. SelectOK
h. ItsendsthedocumenttotheEditor
i. ThereshouldbeanemailreceivedstatingSubmissionConfirmation
Typeofarticles:(Typespecificcriteria)
a.Review
b.Research
c.LettertoEditor
d.CaseStudy/TechnicalNote
MANUSCRIPTPREPARATION
A.Style:Authorsareexpectedtofollowtheconventionalwriting,notation,andillustrationstyle
prescribedintheAmericanInstituteofPhysics(AIP)StyleManual.Afreecopyisavailableby
clickingonthelinkprovidedbelow.Authorsareencouragedtogainfamiliarizationwiththe
journal’sformandstylebyreviewingrecentissuesofMedicalDosimetry.
http://www.aip.org/pubservs/style/4thed/toc.html
B.TitlePage:Thetitleshouldbebriefandspecific.TopofPage,centered,andBold.Thetitlepage
shouldcontainthetitle,authorandco‐authors,aswellasinstitutionsandaddressesforeach
author.Ifthepaperwaspresentedatameeting,thenameoftheorganization,place,anddateof
meetingshouldbelisted.Providethecorrespondingauthor'sfullmailingaddress,telephoneand
faxnumbers,ande‐mailaddress.
C.Abstract:Anabstractmustaccompanyeveryarticle(exceptforaLettertotheEditor).For
ReviewArticles,ResearchArticles,andCaseStudy/TechnicalReports,astructuredabstractis
requiredcontainfollowinginformation:Purpose,Methods,ResultsandConclusions.Theabstract
shouldnotexceed300words.
1. Headings
a. MainHeadingsinALLCaps,boldtypeandcenter.Examplesofmajorheadings:
INTRODUCTION,METHODSANDMATERIALS,RESULTS,DISCUSSION,CONCLUSION,
andREFERENCES.
b. Subheadingsitalicized,inregulartype(notbold),alignedtoleftmargin,capitalize1st
Letter.Ex.Breathingmotion,Imagingdose,andReal‐timelungtumorlocalization.
c. PlacetheHeadingAbstractinboldtoleftofpage,Dash(nospace),andthen
immediatelyfollowwithboldedabstractthatisjustified,alignedtotheleftandrightof
thepage.
D.KeyWords(Typedasshownboldanditalicized):Upto4keywordsshouldbechosenthat
capturethetopicandsubjectmatteraddressedinthearticle.Thesekeywordsareusedfor
bibliographicsearchingandindexingandshouldbechosenthoughtfully.Bold,1stLetterofeach
itemiscapitalized;ifitisanacronymalllettersarecapitalized.
E.Format:ManuscriptsmustbeinEnglishandmustbesubmittedthroughthejournalwebsite.
Hardcopysubmissionsarenotaccepted.
1. Font – Arial,Courier,Symbol,orTimes.Thiswillensurethatthefinal,publishedversion(in
printandonline)matchesyourelectronicfileascloselyaspossible.
2. Type‐isthesamesizethroughoutthetextwithasizeof12points.
3. LineSpacingsettodoublespacing.PerMEDDOSguidelineDocument
a. Shouldremainconstantthroughout.Donotaddextraspacingbetweenparagraphsand
headings.
b. Submissionsshouldnotexceed10printedjournalpages.Ruleofthumbistodividethe
double‐spacedmanuscripttextby3andthenumberoffigures/tablesby4toestimate
thetotalcountofresultingprintedpages.
4. Sentencespacing1space.
5. Pagemarginssetto1inchforallborders.
6. PagenumberConsecutivelynumbered,placedinthefooter,andcentered(MEDDOS).
7. Paragraph
a.Indentionone‐halfinchor5spaces.UsuallytabKeywillautomaticallydothisamount.
b.Regulartype(notbold).
8. Abbreviations–Typethemeaningoftheabbreviationthentheabbreviationin
parenthesis.Example–PTV(planningtargetvolumes).
a.IftheabbreviationisfirstusedintheAbstractandtheninthetext,themeaningofthe
abbreviationmustbefollowedbytheabbreviationinparenthesisintheabstractand
thefirsttimethatitisplacedinthetext.Afterthefirsttimeintext,onlyusethe
abbreviation.
b.Iftheabbreviationisusedinthetextonly,thefirsttimethatitisplacedinthetextthe
meaningoftheabbreviationneedstobefollowedbytheabbreviationplacedin
parenthesis.Afterthefirsttimeintext,onlyusetheabbreviation.
9. Longquotationsgreaterthan3or4linesindentoneinchor10spaces,fromtheleftand
rightmargin.
10. Visuals‐Placeatendoftextforwritingcompetitions.Notatevisualsintheorderasthey
occurwithinthetext.
11. Figures‐includegraphs,charts,maps,photographs,anddrawings.(MEDDOS)Listinorder.
a. Typeinformation:belowthefigure,abbreviatefigurefollowedbyaperiod,placeaspace
betweenfigureandthefigurenumber,followfigurenumberwithaperiod,space
capitalizefirstwordcenter,regulartype(notbold),andendswithaperiod.
Example‐Fig.2.TheplanningCTdataanditscorrespondingMRIcounterpart
(MEDDOS).
F.Introduction:Everyreviewandresearcharticlemustincludeanintroductionsectionthat
identifiesthebackgroundandsubjectmatterinthearticle,describingwhyitisimportantto
address,andprovideasummaryoftheapproachutilized.Thisintroductionshouldprovidea
contextforareaderwhoisnotintimatelyfamiliarwiththeissueorproblemathand.
G.Mathematics:Mathematicalexpressionsshouldbeformattedascompletelyaspossible.Donot
usemathematicalderivationsthatareeasilyfoundelsewhereintheliterature.Merelycitethe
references.
H.Tables:Extensivenumericalmaterialshouldbepresentedintablesratherthaninthebodyof
thetext.Theyaredocumentedabovethetable.(MEDICALDOSIMETRY).
1.Thetextabovethetableiscentered.Thesentencebeginswithacapitolanddoesnotend
withaperiod.Ex.Table2.IMRTplanningobjectives
2.Thetextbelowthetableusestheleftmargin.Beginswithacapitalletterandendswitha
period.
a.Eachtablemusthaveacaptionthatmakesthedatainthetableintelligiblewithout
referencetothetext.Provideaclearcaptionthatidentifiesthesubject.Listinorder.
Complicatedcolumnheadingsshouldbeavoided,butsymbolsusedinthetablesshould
beinthecaption.Longtablesshouldbeavoidedifpossible.Footnotestotablesshould
beindicatedbylowercaselettersinthefollowingorder:*,†,‡,#,||,§,**.Tablesshould
notincludeextensivedetailthatcouldbeincludedinthemainmanuscript.
b.Footnotestoatableareindicatedbyasequenceoflower‐caselettersa,b,c,ect.,witha
newsequencestartingwithaforeachtable.Theorderingoffootnoteindicatorsshould
belefttorightacrossonerow,thenlefttorightacrossthenextrow,andsoon.Placethe
footnotesthemselvesbelowthedoublelineattheendofthetable.
ExampleofCaptionandFootnotes:
I.Permissions:Ifatableorfigurehasbeenpreviouslypublished,themanuscriptshouldincludea
creditlineandtheauthorshouldincludeapermissionletterfromtheoriginalpublisher.
J.Acknowledgments:AreplacefollowingDISCUSSIONSandCONCLUSIONSandpriorto
REFERENCES,thewordacknowledgementisitalicizedandnotbold,dashfollows
acknowledgementnospacebetweenthewords,capitalizefirstletter,andendwithaperiod.
Example‐Acknowledgment‐ThisworksupportedinpartbyResearchScholarGrant#03‐028001‐
CCEfromtheAmericanCancerSocietyandSiemens.PatientstudieswereperformedunderUCLA
IRB#03‐10‐036‐01
K.References:Referencesshouldbeassignedconsecutivenumbersastheyoccurinthebodyof
thetext.Theyshouldalsobelistedinthesameorderonaseparatesheet.Titlesofarticles,complete
listsofauthors,andinclusivepaginationmustbeincluded.Referencesmustbeintheaccessible,
archivalliterature.Privatecommunicationsandcommercialidentificationsandmanualsarenot
appropriateforthereferencelist,butcanbeidentifiedasfootnotestothetext.Whencitingintext
pertheAIPmanualthenumbersinthetextshouldbesuperscriptedwiththeuseofacomma
betweenthenumbersandwiththeuseofadashbetweenarangeofnumbers.Referencesshouldbe
placedwiththeconsecutivenumberastheyoccurwithinthetext.Meaningthatthe1stlisted
referencesshouldbe1,the2ndlistedreferenceshouldbe2,andsoon.
1. Thefollowingarereferenceexamplesthatareformattedin(a‐c)(MEDDOS)
a. Journal:1.Ling,C.C.;Spiro,I.J.;Mitchell,J.;Stickler,R.ThevariationofOERwithdose
rate.Int.J.Radiat.Oncol.Biol.Phys.11:1367‐1373;1985.
b. Book:2.Bentel,G.C.;Nelson,C.E.;Noel,K.T.Treatmentplanninganddosecalculationin
radiationoncology.3ded.Elmsford,NY:PergamonPress;1986.
c. ChapterinEditedBook:3.Marks,J.E.;Lee,F.Irradiationtechniquesforheadandneck
cancer.In:Levitt,S.H.;Tapley,N.V.,editors.Technologicalbasisofradiationtherapy:
practicalclinicalapplications.Philadelphia:LeaandFebinger;1984:116‐119.
2. RTOGreferences:Mickalsky,L.;Purdy,J.;Watkins‐Brunner,D.;etal.APhaseI/IIdose
escalationstudyofhighdosethreedimensional‐CRT/IMRTversusstandarddosethree
dimensional‐CRT/IMRTinpatientstreatedforlocalizedprostatecancer.RTOGprotocol0126;
2004.www.rtog.org/.
3. ICRUreferences:
a. ICRUReport42.UseofComputersinExternalBeamRadiotherapyProcedureswith
High‐EnergyPhotonsandElectrons.1987. http://www.icru.org/.
4. AAPMReference:AAPMCodeofPracticeforBrachytherapyPhysics:ReportofAAPM
RadiationTherapyCommitteeTaskGroupNo.56.NewYork:AmericanInstituteofPhysics;
1997.Includeapagenumberforthistypeofreference..
http://www.aapm.org/pubs/reports/.
5. CancerSocietyReferences:
a. AmericanCancerSociety,editor.AmericanCancerSociety.CancerFactsandFigures2006.
Atlanta;AmericanCancerSociety;2006.http://www.cancer.org/
b. BCCS/NCIC,editor.CanadianCancerSociety/NationalCancerInstituteofCanada:Canadian
CancerStatistics2006.Toronto:CanadianCancerSociety;2006.www.cancer.ca/
c. AustralianInstituteofHealthandWelfare(AIHW)andAustralasianAssociationofCancer
Registries.CancerinAustralia2001.Canberra:AIHW;2004:1‐157.www.aihw.gov.au/