Guest-edited journal issues face mass retractions over compromised peer review

A recent retraction by the British Medical Journal’s publishing group removed almost an entire special issue of the Journal of Medical Genetics that focused on cancer immunotherapies.

The journal said the retraction was due in part to compromised peer review across nearly all articles, highlighting concerns about the use of guest editors.

Critics argue that guest‑edited special issues often have reduced peer‑review rigor and are driven by financial incentives, allowing researchers to boost CVs while threatening literature quality.

The problem is not isolated; in 2024 Springer Nature withdrew 34 papers from special issues for similar editorial handling failures, underscoring a broader issue in academic publishing.