Whilst conducting an internal audit, BioMed Central discovered a number of apparent major irregularities in the journal Head & Neck Oncology. In order to maintain the integrity of the BioMed Central portfolio of journals, we decided to cease publication of the journal with effect from 9th August 2012 and have been cooperating with the joint investigation being carried out by UCL and UCLH. Any further action taken will be in accordance with COPE guidelines. If you have submitted an article to this journal which has not yet been accepted for publication, or are the author of an article published in this journal and have further questions, please contact info@biomedcentral.com.