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Pathology International: A perspective toward the 21st century

Dr Yukio Shimosato resigned as editor of Pathology International in May 1995. The journal has been published for 45 years (formerly as Acta Pathologica Japonica), but it was under Dr Shimasato’s editorship (1987–95) that the journal became international. Under his direction the peer review system was introduced, the presentation of papers was changed to conform to international standards, the title was changed to Pathology International and Blackwell Science was appointed as the publisher. Pathology International is now distributed to over 4000 subscribers worldwide. The rate of acceptance of manuscripts was 68% in 1992 and 75% in 1993. In 1994, 170 manuscripts were submitted to the journal; 63 were published as original articles, 46 as case reports, three as letters and seven as review articles. These papers covered a wide area of human and experimental pathology; some were entirely original whilst a few were more educational in content. Approximately 20 of the major pathology journals are published along similar lines with a range of content. The rapidity of recent scientific progress has meant that many are trying to find their own identity, a problem encountered by many journals of medical science. Some pathology journals continue to publish traditional research material, some have chosen to focus more on disease mechanisms, some publish research in the field of diagnostic surgical pathology and some have concentrated on education. Pathology International, like all academic journals, will survive and develop provided it continues to publish papers of scientific excellence. These will be read and cited worldwide. Readers will ignore articles that lack academic importance. Here lies the fact that will rule the future of any journal—only those with articles of excellence will develop. Therefore, research on disease mechanisms will be encouraged in Pathology International. Pathologists enjoy the privilege of encountering a wide spectrum of human diseases. With the knowledge, together with good pathologic specimens, morphology and the introduction of new technologies like molecular biology, pathologists have a headstart in the race to reveal disease mechanisms. We can be more enthusiastic than ever before about this line of research as we are now ready to solve the many problems of human diseases that pathologists in the past could only dream of doing. However, reluctance to adopt more effective methods will mean that pathologists, despite their privileged position, will have difficulty in maintaining their lead position as the primary researcher of disease mechanisms. Brilliant original articles in the field of surgical pathology should be encouraged. In various clinical fields, the final diagnosis is based exclusively on histopathology. Furthermore, histopathology is still a powerful too in the discovery of new diseases or the modification of accepted disease concepts. Influential articles in these areas should be highly regarded. On the other hand, case reports should be published only if judged to be highly original. The pathologist is privileged to have the opportunity of discovering unexpected or unknown facts or ideas from specific cases. However, case reports that are judged to be of only educational value will not be encouraged and will only be published where coverage of a subject area is comprehensive. As an overall policy, the journal will encourage articles that challenge or oppose current academic dogma, even if the arguments presented are judged to be somewhat immature. In summary, the publication of excellent articles on human diseases using good specimens, efficient modern methodologies and morphology and enthusiasm for research above all will be the way Pathology International will develop into the next century.