Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 15 005
Apply for RFA CA 15 005
- The National Institutes of Health in the education health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Advanced Development and Validation of Emerging Technologies for Cancer Relevant Biospecimen Science (R33)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.394 Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jan 8, 2015 and posted on Jan 8, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 22, 2015. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $800,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $300,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Private institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Independent school districts Special district governments Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Small businesses For profit organizations other than small businesses County governments Public and State controlled institutions of higher education City or township governments Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) State governments.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs) Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Faith based or Community based Organizations Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) Regional Organizations Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) U.S. Territory or Possession.
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Opportunity Summary:
The Advanced Development and Validation of Emerging Technologies for Cancer Relevant Biospecimen Science (R33) funding opportunity (RFA-CA-15-005) is a National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute solicitation focused on improving how cancer-related biospecimens are collected, processed, handled, and stored before they ever reach downstream molecular or clinical analyses. The central problem the FOA targets is pre-analytical degradation and variability: changes that occur to important biological targets (analytes such as DNA, RNA, proteins, metabolites, cells, or other measurable components) due to the conditions and steps that happen before the actual test or experiment is performed. Because these pre-analytical factors can distort results, reduce reproducibility, and create misleading biological signals, the opportunity prioritizes technology development that can either measure, prevent, or standardize against these sources of variation.
Projects supported under this R33 mechanism are expected to be beyond the earliest concept stage. Applications must include preliminary data that credibly demonstrate feasibility, but the proposed technology can still require additional engineering, optimization, and validation before it becomes broadly useful. In other words, the FOA is geared toward advanced development and validation work that pushes an emerging tool toward a practical level of performance for cancer research settings, rather than purely exploratory ideas without supporting evidence.
The technologies envisioned by the FOA include tools, devices, instrumentation, and enabling methods that improve biospecimen quality and utility. This can mean innovations that directly preserve or protect specimen integrity (for example, stabilizing labile molecules during collection or transport), technologies that assess sample quality (for example, rapid indicators or metrics that reveal whether a specimen is still fit for a given type of analysis), and approaches that establish verification criteria for quality assessment and quality control under diverse real-world conditions. A key theme is making biospecimens more reliable inputs for downstream assays by reducing or accounting for pre-analytical variation, particularly across different collection sites, handling workflows, storage durations, and environmental exposures.
By strengthening biospecimen quality and standardization, the FOA aims to accelerate and improve research and applications across a wide range of cancer-related domains. The announcement explicitly links these improvements to cancer biology research, early detection and screening, clinical diagnosis, treatment studies, epidemiology, and cancer health disparities research. The health disparities emphasis is important because inconsistent pre-analytical conditions can disproportionately affect multi-site studies and populations with variable access to uniform clinical infrastructure, potentially introducing bias or reducing the interpretability of results.
This opportunity is part of the NCI-sponsored Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program, which broadly supports the development of novel technologies that can improve cancer research capabilities. Administratively, it is a discretionary grant opportunity in the health area, with a CFDA listing under 93.394 (Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research). The FOA anticipated making about two awards, with an estimated total funding level of $800,000 and an award ceiling of $300,000. It did not require cost sharing or matching.
Eligibility was broad and included many types of applicant organizations, spanning public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities), small businesses, for-profit organizations (including those other than small businesses), and various local, state, tribal, territorial, and regional government entities. The eligibility language also indicated inclusion of several institution types such as HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, AANAPISIs, tribally controlled colleges and universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian serving institutions, and faith-based or community-based organizations, among others, and it allowed non-U.S. (foreign) organizations as eligible entities. The FOA was posted on January 8, 2015, with an original and current closing date of September 22, 2015, and it was archived on October 23, 2015.
For full official details, the announcement directed applicants to the NIH Grants Guide page for RFA-CA-15-005 (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-CA-15-005.html) and provided NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster contact information for access or linking issues.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the name of this funding opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Advanced Development and Validation of Emerging Technologies for Cancer Relevant Biospecimen Science (R33)" and is identified as RFA-CA-15-005.
Which agencies are sponsoring this opportunity?
This is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) opportunity sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
What is the main problem the FOA is trying to solve?
The FOA focuses on pre-analytical degradation and variability in cancer-related biospecimens. These are changes to important biological targets (analytes like DNA, RNA, proteins, metabolites, cells, and other measurable components) that can occur during collection, processing, handling, transport, and storage before downstream molecular or clinical analyses are performed.
Why are pre-analytical factors such a big issue for cancer research?
Because pre-analytical conditions can distort results, reduce reproducibility, and create misleading biological signals. If a specimen changes before testing, the downstream analysis may reflect handling artifacts rather than true biology.
What does the R33 mechanism imply about the maturity of the proposed technology?
Projects are expected to be beyond the earliest concept stage. Applications must include preliminary data that credibly demonstrates feasibility, while still allowing room for additional engineering, optimization, and validation needed to reach practical performance for cancer research settings.
Is preliminary data required?
Yes. The FOA states that applications must include preliminary data that credibly demonstrate feasibility.
What kinds of technologies are in scope for this FOA?
The FOA envisions tools, devices, instrumentation, and enabling methods that improve biospecimen quality and utility. This includes technologies that measure, prevent, or standardize against pre-analytical sources of variation.
What are examples of the types of improvements the FOA is looking for?
Examples described include innovations that preserve or protect specimen integrity (such as stabilizing labile molecules during collection or transport), technologies that assess sample quality (such as rapid indicators or metrics that show whether a specimen is fit for a particular analysis), and approaches that establish verification criteria for quality assessment and quality control under diverse real-world conditions.
What stages of the biospecimen lifecycle does this opportunity target?
It targets the pre-analytical phase: collection, processing, handling, transport, and storage, before specimens reach downstream molecular or clinical analyses.
What is meant by "pre-analytical variation" in this FOA?
Pre-analytical variation refers to differences introduced by real-world conditions and steps prior to testing, such as differences across collection sites, handling workflows, storage durations, and environmental exposures.
How does this FOA connect biospecimen quality improvements to cancer research impact?
The FOA links improved biospecimen quality and standardization to accelerating and improving work across cancer biology research, early detection and screening, clinical diagnosis, treatment studies, epidemiology, cancer health disparities research, and other cancer-relevant applications.
Why does the FOA emphasize cancer health disparities?
The FOA highlights that inconsistent pre-analytical conditions can disproportionately affect multi-site studies and populations with uneven access to uniform clinical infrastructure, potentially introducing bias or reducing interpretability of results.
Is this opportunity part of a larger program?
Yes. It is part of the NCI-sponsored Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program, which supports development of novel technologies to improve cancer research capabilities.
What is the CFDA number and program area listed for this opportunity?
The FOA lists CFDA 93.394, described as Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research.
How many awards were anticipated?
The FOA anticipated making about two awards.
What was the estimated total funding level?
The estimated total funding level was $800,000.
What was the award ceiling?
The award ceiling was $300,000.
Was cost sharing or matching required?
No. The FOA did not require cost sharing or matching.
Who was eligible to apply?
Eligibility was broad, including public and private institutions of higher education; nonprofit organizations (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); small businesses; for-profit organizations (including those other than small businesses); and a range of government entities (local, state, tribal, territorial, regional).
Were specific institution types explicitly included?
Yes. The eligibility language indicated inclusion of institution types such as HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, AANAPISIs, tribally controlled colleges and universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian serving institutions, and faith-based or community-based organizations, among others.
Were non-U.S. (foreign) organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA allowed non-U.S. (foreign) organizations as eligible entities.
When was the FOA posted?
The FOA was posted on January 8, 2015.
What was the closing date for applications?
The original and current closing date listed was September 22, 2015.
Is the opportunity still open?
No. The FOA was archived on October 23, 2015.
Where can applicants find the official announcement and full details?
The FOA directed applicants to the NIH Grants Guide page for RFA-CA-15-005: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-CA-15-005.html
Who was listed as a contact for access or linking issues?
The announcement provided NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster contact information for access or linking issues (as referenced in the FOA materials).
What does "biospecimen quality and utility" mean in the context of this FOA?
In this FOA, it refers to making biospecimens more reliable inputs for downstream assays by reducing, measuring, preventing, or standardizing pre-analytical variability that can compromise analytes and affect the interpretability of results.
What is the practical goal of the supported technology development?
The practical goal is to push an emerging biospecimen-related tool toward a usable level of performance for cancer research settings by completing advanced development and validation work, rather than focusing on purely exploratory ideas without feasibility evidence.
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