The International Journal for Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery (IJCARS) is a peer-reviewed journal to provide a platform closing the gap between medical and technical disciplines and to encourage interdisciplinary research and development activities in an international environment. The focus of the journal is on R&D areas relating to digital imaging methods and computer-assisted diagnostic and therapeutic workflows that match and enhance the skill levels of health care professionals. IJCARS invites submissions on topics in information sciences, ICT, and mechatronic systems design as well as clinical application fields such as: Medical imaging, e.g. CT, MR, US, SPECT, PET, DR, molecular imaging, and virtual endoscopy Image processing and display 3D, 4D, and 5D imaging Hospital-wide PACS and telemedicine Computer applications for e.g. neurosurgery, head and neck, orthopaedics, ear nose and throat, cardiovascular and thoracoabdominal surgery, and plastic/reconstructive surgery Image-guided therapy Surgical robotics and instrumentation Surgical navigation 3D modeling and rapid prototyping Postoperative result assessment Surgical education and training Haptics and multimodal devices in medical applications Methods of validation and verification CAD for breast, prostate, chest, colon, skeletal, liver, brain, and vascular imaging Cranial and maxillofacial image-guided surgery Surgical workflow Surgical DICOM and IHE Digital operating room IJCARS will present results from these fields in original papers, review articles, short communications and commentaries. To increase the value of health care for the general populace, one focus of IJCARS is on providing information on new diagnostic and therapeutic processes which are facilitated by CARS. This includes providers' experiences, patient outcomes, economic and ethical considerations, and scientific/medical validation results. It is expected that the resulting awareness by users and providers will accelerate the acceptance of CARS-supported procedures in clinical practice.