In 2026, many ALES 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 (2026)

Mark Radlinski, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, USA

Outstanding Author

Mark Radlinski

Mark Radlinski, MD, is a board-certified gastroenterologist who serves as the director of third-space endoscopy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition. He is both the Assistant Program Director of Endoscopy for the general gastroenterology fellowship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) and the Associate Program Director of the interventional endoscopy fellowship at VUMC. He has received specialized training and certification in third-space endoscopy, including the performance of gastric per-oral endoscopic myotomy for gastroparesis, esophageal per-oral endoscopic myotomy for achalasia, and endoscopic submucosal dissection for early gastrointestinal cancers. He is an active member of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), and the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG). His career has focused on endoscopic education, clinical research, and the advancement of the field of third-space endoscopy.

Dr. Radlinski states that academic writing is vital for the progress of science and the exchange of ideas. Peer-reviewed, clinical review articles can provide trustworthy and comprehensive summaries of important topics within the field of gastroenterology. This can provide a useful framework for physicians looking to stay up to date on topics for continued medical education. Unbiased, academic source material is essential to allow for decision-making based on credible sources, written with academic integrity. The peer-review process ensures that any findings are vetted and meet acceptable scientific standards. Publishing academic writing sparks dialogue within the field of experts and can help generate new theories and hypotheses. This can also lead to reproducibility studies to confirm hypothesized results.

Dr. Radlinski emphasizes that meaningful scientific conclusions should be based on relevant source material. It is important that when utilizing data from shared sources or previously published research, the primary sources must be directly applicable to the current research questions, or any such conclusions could be diluted or skewed. As would be expected, if researchers synthesize data from poorly conducted or irrelevant studies, any conclusions and discussion derived from this will be significantly less meaningful. Strict inclusion and exclusion criteria must be used to ensure data sources are appropriate for inclusion in any research analysis.

In addition, Dr. Radlinski thinks that reporting guidelines provide a framework for both the design and interpretation of research articles. These frameworks ensure that each study is required to report on study design, patient selection, methodology, analysis, outcomes, and limitations of the study. This ensures that all these topics are directly addressed by the author, allowing for maximal transparency and completeness. As a peer reviewer, addressing these topics can ensure that the research was conducted with integrity and without bias or omission. As the reader, these are all topics that are expected to be addressed to allow for interpretation and application to relevant patient populations. Reporting on these metrics allows for reproducibility studies to be performed, which is one of the cornerstones of academic medicine.

(by Sasa Zhu, Brad Li)