Objective : To explore the status of cancer research in the Republic of Korea. Methods : Thirty-eight medical journals, published in Korea between 1990 and 1996, were reviewed for abstracts relating to cancer research. Of the 5,899 eligible abstracts related to cancer, 4,732 were collected and evaluated. Results : Including first author and first two co-authors, a total of 7,427 authors were identified. Those who published an average of one or more article per one year were defined as cancer researchers for this study. This group, however, accounted for a small proportion of the total (3.1%). Analysis of the selected abstracts showed that the study goals in more than half focused on pathophysiologic mechanisms. Studies that were designed to use causal relationships such as cohort studies and randomized controlled trials were rare. A greater number of analytic and experimental studies were found in abstracts published by the cancer researcher group. More advanced study designs that explored causal relationships and analytic procedures were found in abstracts published later than those abstracts published from 1990 to 1992. Conclusion : Our findings show that researchers who published more articles adopted more advanced study designs. This study provides primary data that can be used to compare the status of cancer research in future studies.