Grants available for Cancer Consortium members

Funds are available from the Fred Hutchinson/University of Washington Cancer Consortium Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) to support cancer-related pilot projects in calendar years 2010-11. Faculty who are Consortium members on or before the March 1 application deadline are eligible for this pilot funding.

There are two separate requests for pilot project applications (RFAs) supported by CCSG funds—one is a general application (Announcement A), and one is specifically for clinical translational research projects (Announcement B). Interested investigators must respond to only one of the RFAs.

The guidelines are as follows:

1. The pilot proposals should represent a new project or new research direction for the principal investigator, and one that is likely to provide preliminary data to seek outside funding. The grant committee especially seeks new projects that forge new collaborations between investigators in different disciplines.
   
   Grants from more established investigators are only likely to be competitive if they are for a pilot study that is needed to establish a new direction and/or research project, rather than a project that is an extension of ongoing well-established studies. If applicants do not have independent RO1 funding or significant experience with grant applications, they are encouraged to work with a faculty mentor to develop a competitive application.
   
   
2. Priority will be given to proposals that:
   • Have a wide interest and impact on the Consortium
     
   • Are interdisciplinary and/or lead to new collaborations among investigators in the Consortium
     
   • Are highly innovative, yet technically feasible.
3. The pilot funds may be used:
   • To generate key preliminary results for applications for outside funding
     
   • To provide a timely opportunity—that might otherwise be lost if delayed by the National Institutes of Health review cycle—to test a new hypothesis or idea.
     

The awards will total up to $40,000 indirect costs for a single year; facilities and administrative (F&A) costs will be included in the awards in addition to this amount, at the institutional F&A cost rate.

More information and RFA documents are available on the Consortium Web site at: https://www.cancerconsortium.org/en/about/funding-opportunities/pilot-awards.html.
 
Applications are due by 5 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, Monday, March 1. If you have questions, contact Jennifer Blaesing at (206) 667-6777, jblaesin@fhcrc.org.