OpportunityTitle: DoD Prostate Cancer Health Disparity Research Award
Description: The PCRP Health Disparity Research Award mechanism was first offered in FY01. Since then, 442 Health Disparity Research Award applications have been received, and 80 have been recommended for funding. The Health Disparity Research Award supports new ideas based on innovative concepts or methodologies for health disparity research with the potential to make an important contribution toward eliminating death from prostate cancer and enhancing the well-being of men impacted by the disease. Studies proposed for this award mechanism are expected to improve the understanding of, and ultimately contribute to eliminating disparities in prostate cancer incidence, morbidity, mortality, and survivorship. Applicants for this award must explicitly state how the proposed research is related to an area of prostate cancer health disparity. Appropriate health disparity areas include, but are not limited to: race and ethnicity; socioeconomic status; access to health care; differing standards of health care; insurance status; age; geography; sexual orientation; gender identity; and cultural beliefs. Because of the emphasis on innovation, the inclusion of preliminary data relevant to prostate cancer and the proposed project is encouraged but not required. Any preliminary data provided should be from the Principal Investigator (PI) or a member(s) of the research team. The PCRP seeks applications from investigators from a spectrum of disciplines including, but not limited to, basic science, engineering, bioinformatics, population science, translational research, and clinical research, provided they are appropriately focused on an issue of prostate cancer health disparity. In addition, all applications are expected to be relevant to one or more of the PCRP focus areas and are encouraged to be responsive to one or more of the PCRP overarching challenges. If the proposed project does not address one of the overarching challenges, the application must describe how the project will nevertheless address a critical disparity-related need in the field of prostate cancer research and/or patient care. The Health Disparity Research Award also emphasizes the potential impact, both short-term and long-term, of the research project in reducing or eliminating prostate cancer health disparities. To maximize the potential for impact, investigators are strongly encouraged to incorporate the following components into their study design where appropriate: authentication of proposed cell lines; statistical rigor of preclinical animal experiments; incorporation of experiments to assess clinical relevance and translatability of findings. As such, the PCRP-funded Prostate Cancer Biorepository Network (PCBN) ( http://www.prostatebiorepository.org) and/or the North Carolina &#8211; Louisiana Prostate Cancer Project (PCaP) (http://www.ncla-pcap.org) are important resources to consider if retrospectively collected human anatomical substances or correlated data are critical to the proposed studies. Studies utilizing data derived from large patient studies that include long-term health records, biospecimen repositories, and pre-existing research and that apply state-of-the art genomic and/or proteomic analysis, bioinformatics, and/or mathematical models to such data are also encouraged. New Investigators: This award encourages applications from investigators in the early stages of their careers. The New Investigator category is designed to allow PIs, early in their faculty appointments or in the process of developing independent research careers, to compete for funding separately from established investigators. PIs using the New Investigator category are strongly encouraged to strengthen their applications by including investigators experienced in prostate cancer research and/or possessing other relevant expertise as demonstrated by a record of funding and publications. It is the responsibility of the PI to describe how additional investigators will augment his/her expertise and better address the research question. PIs may choose to employ both the New Investigator category and the Qualified Collaborator Option (described below) in a single application. All applicants for the New Investigator category must meet specific eligibility criteria, as described in Section I.C., Eligibility Information. The Health Disparity Research Award offers two additional options for consideration: 1. Qualified Collaborator Option: The Health Disparity Research Award strongly supports collaborative research involving basic, population science, and clinical researchers; researchers with prostate cancer expertise and those with health disparity expertise; and/or researchers and community organizations that may be critical to the study of populations disproportionately affected by prostate cancer. Although these and other types of collaborations are, in general, strongly encouraged, collaborations that meet specific criteria will qualify for a higher level of funding, as described in Section I.D., Funding. For the application to qualify for a higher level of funding, the PI must submit a Qualified Collaboration Statement that clearly describes the proposed collaborator and collaboration and addresses how each of the criteria below are met. In addition, the collaborator must provide a letter of collaboration describing his/her involvement in the proposed work. It should be clear from both documents that the successful completion of the project depends on the unique skills and contributions of both the PI and the qualified collaborator. The following criteria must be met to use the Qualified Collaborator Option: o The collaborator must significantly contribute to the project such that the proposed work could not be accomplished without his/her involvement. This is expected to include both intellectual input and research resources (e.g., supplies, reagents, equipment, personnel, services, tissue samples, or access to patients or populations). o The collaborator must contribute at least a 10% level of effort to the project. Contribution of the collaborator should be reflected in the application budget. o If the PI does not have experience in prostate cancer research and/or working with disproportionately affected populations, the collaborator must possess such experience. 2. Nested Young Investigator Option: This award also supports the incorporation of young investigators into the research project in order to provide highly motivated predoctoral and postdoctoral scientists experience in prostate cancer health disparity research. The young investigator is not required to have previous health disparity or prostate cancer research experience, but should have a sincere interest in pursuing a career in resolving disparities in prostate cancer incidence, morbidity, mortality, and survivorship. This option primarily provides additional funding to support the salary of the young investigator who will be working on the proposed research project. In addition, an individualized researcher development plan focused in prostate cancer disparities must be described, and should include a clearly articulated strategy for acquiring the necessary skills, competence, and expertise that will enable the young investigator to successfully complete the proposed research project and foster the young investigator&#8217;s development as a prostate cancer health disparity researcher. Only one predoctoral or postdoctoral young investigator may be included per application.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: CDMRP Help Desk
GrantorContactText: CDMRP Help Desk &lt;br/&gt;301-682-5507