Funding Opportunities

NCI-wide Omnibus Funding Announcements (R21/ R03)

NCI has announced new R21 and R03 funding opportunities. These new program announcements (PAs) are NCI-wide and solicit applications in all areas of cancer research relevant to the mission of NCI, including complementary and alternative medicine. The new awards will replace many existing PAs, including OCCAM’s expiring program announcements: Developmental Projects in Complementary Approaches to Cancer Care and Treatment (R21) PA-09-167 and Developmental Projects in Complementary Approaches to Cancer Care and Treatment (R03) PA-09-168.

NCI Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program
(NCI Omnibus R21)

This R21 mechanism promotes the early and conceptual stages of research efforts on novel scientific ideas that have the potential to substantially advance cancer research in all areas relevant to the mission of the NCI. By using the R21 mechanism, this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) will support “Exploratory/ Developmental” projects and may involve basic, translational, clinical, and/ or population research in areas of cancer biology, cancer control, cancer diagnosis, cancer disparities, cancer prevention, or cancer treatment.

Please view the FOA for specific submission details and dates: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pafiles/PAR-12-145.html.

NCI Small Grants Program for Cancer Research (NCI Omnibus R03)

This R03 mechanism supports discrete, well-defined projects in any area of cancer research that can realistically be completed in 2 years and that require limited levels of funding. Types of projects may include pilot or feasibility studies; secondary analysis of existing data; small, self contained research projects; development of research methodology; and development of new research technology.

Please view the FOA for specific submission details and dates: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pafiles/ PAR-12-144.html.

New Funding Opportunity: Pilot and Feasibility Clinical Research Studies in Digestive Diseases and Nutrition (R21)

The National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), and the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) have recently released a funding announcement to investigate digestive and liver diseases and the nutritional disorders associated with them, including those associated with an increased risk of cancer. This R21 grant mechanism is limited to $275,000 of direct costs over a maximum, 2-year period. R21s provide flexibility for initiating preliminary, short-term clinical studies that allow new ideas to be investigated in an expedited manner thus encouraging investigators to pursue creative avenues of research.

This program announcement titled “Pilot and Feasibility Clinical Research Studies in Digestive Diseases and Nutrition (R21)” has four areas of research interest: the effects of diet on cancer risk and progression, rare or uncommon digestive diseases, hepatitis B and C, and the safety and efficacy of surgical and endoscopic techniques. The NCI is particularly interested in the effect of food and bioactive food components on cancer cells. Appropriate research studies include, but are not limited to, those:

• Examining interactions between nutrients, such as antioxidants and micronutrients, on mediators of the inflammatory responses in digestive diseases, including cancer.
• Investigating the role of alterations of dietary fatty acids on clinical mediators of digestive diseases, for example, prostaglandins.
• Developing strategies using bioactive food components to examine biomarkers associated with cancer change and tumor behavior.

To view the complete funding announcement, visit the web page at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-12-139.html or direct further questions to the NCI’s Scientific/Research Contact, Dr. Maria Agelli, ma215e@nih. gov.

New Funding Opportunity: Small Grants for Behavioral Research in Cancer Control (R03)

NCI has announced a new funding opportunity for advancing behavioral sciences research in cancer prevention and control at the individual, familial, community, and population levels. This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) limits direct costs to $100,000 over a maximum 2-year period and encourages researchers to conduct well-defined projects such as pilot or feasibility studies, secondary analyses of existing data, or meta-analyses. Examples of specific research areas of interest for this FOA include, but are not limited to:

• Studies focusing on the health promotion of cancer survivors, their families, and caregivers through exercise promotion and dietary interventions.
• Studies investigating the impact of gene interaction and health-related behaviors (e.g. diet, physical activity) on cancer risk or disease progression.
• Studies examining health literacy, the digital divide, knowledge gap hypothesis, and other communication-related variables that may contribute to the unequal burden of cancer across populations.
• Studies addressing medical decision making (e.g. the role of numeracy in medical decision making, elucidating decision processes involved in maintenance of healthy lifestyle behaviors).

To view the complete funding announcement, visit the web page at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-12-035.html or direct further questions to the NCI’s Scientific/ Research Contact, Gina Tesauro, M.S.W. at gina.tesauro@nih.gov.