DoD Breast Cancer Era of Hope Scholar Award | Apply Online

FAQs: DoD Breast Cancer Era of Hope Scholar Award (W81XWH-14-BCRP-EOHS)

What is the DoD Breast Cancer Era of Hope Scholar Award?

The DoD Breast Cancer Era of Hope Scholar Award is a U.S. Army (USAMRAA) funding opportunity under the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) Breast Cancer Research Program. It is designed to support people, not just proposals, by identifying early-career investigators who have already shown unusual promise and momentum and giving them support and visibility to pursue bold, field-shifting contributions toward ending breast cancer.

What is the main goal of this award?

The main goal is to invest in an early-career Principal Investigator (PI) with demonstrated creativity, original thinking, productivity, and the ability to set and pursue an ambitious scientific vision that challenges standard assumptions rather than simply extending established lines of work.

Is this award focused more on the investigator or on a specific project?

The emphasis is strongly on the PI and their trajectory. The program is intended to back investigators with the potential to become leaders in the breast cancer research community, not only to fund a specific set of experiments.

Do applicants need prior breast cancer research experience to apply?

No. Prior breast cancer experience is not required. Applicants may come from other disciplines as long as they bring genuinely novel concepts, methods, or perspectives to breast cancer research and the application is clearly focused on breast cancer.

Can researchers from other fields apply if their work is relevant to breast cancer?

Yes. The opportunity explicitly welcomes applicants from other disciplines, provided the proposal is clearly focused on breast cancer and the applicant is contributing new approaches or viewpoints that are meaningfully novel for breast cancer research.

What qualities does the program prioritize in the Principal Investigator?

The award prioritizes the PI's demonstrated creativity and original thinking, productivity and momentum, ability to define and pursue an ambitious scientific vision, and capacity to challenge standard assumptions rather than making incremental extensions of established work.

What does the program mean by "bold, field-shifting contributions"?

Based on the opportunity description, this refers to research directions driven by an ambitious scientific vision that challenges standard assumptions in the field, aiming for accelerated impact toward ending breast cancer rather than incremental progress.

Is collaboration expected as part of the award?

Yes. The award expects the PI to form a research team with the expertise needed to execute the vision. The program preference is for collaborative, team-based science that can accelerate impact.

Does the PI need to demonstrate the ability to build partnerships?

Yes. A key consideration is the applicant's potential to become a leader in the breast cancer research community, including a track record of building effective collaborations and partnerships.

Is there a minimum effort commitment requirement for the PI?

Yes. The PI must devote 50 percent of their full-time professional effort to breast cancer research during the award period.

Can the required 50 percent effort be supported by funding sources other than this award?

Yes. The 50 percent effort can be supported through a combination of this award and other existing funding, but the expectation is that breast cancer becomes a major professional focus rather than a side project.

What is the purpose of the 50 percent effort requirement?

The requirement is intended to ensure breast cancer research is a major professional focus for the PI during the award period, reinforcing that the program is investing in the investigator's trajectory and long-term leadership in breast cancer.

Are consumer advocates required to be included in the research team?

Yes. The research team must include two or more breast cancer consumer advocates.

Who qualifies as a breast cancer consumer advocate for this opportunity?

Consumer advocates must be breast cancer survivors and must be actively involved in a breast cancer advocacy organization. They serve as lay representatives providing independent, objective input on the research and its likely relevance and impact for people with breast cancer or at risk for it.

How many consumer advocates are required?

Two or more breast cancer consumer advocates are required.

What role are consumer advocates expected to play?

They are intended to be formal and meaningful participants who provide independent, objective, lay input on the research direction and its relevance and impact. The project should be structured so advocates are integrated in a way that allows them to influence direction and keep patient impact central, rather than being included in name only.

Can a consumer advocate be an employee of an organization participating in the application?

No. To preserve independence, consumer advocates cannot be employees of any organization participating in the application.

What does it mean that the consumer advocates' advocacy role must be separate from their employment?

It means the advocate's role on the project must be in their capacity as an independent advocate, not as part of their job duties for an organization involved in the application, and their advocacy role must be distinct from any employment relationship they may have.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON) for this award?

The Funding Opportunity Number is W81XWH-14-BCRP-EOHS.

Which program and organization administer this opportunity?

It is offered under the CDMRP Breast Cancer Research Program and is a U.S. Army (USAMRAA) funding opportunity.

What type of funding mechanism is used?

The opportunity is described as discretionary funding and offered through grants and cooperative agreements in the Science and Technology/Research and Development area.

What is the CFDA number associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity falls under CFDA 12.420 (Military Medical Research and Development).

How many awards were anticipated and what was the estimated total funding level?

The program anticipated making about three awards, with an estimated total funding level of $11.2 million.

Was cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity stated there was no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Who was eligible to apply?

Eligibility was listed as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement.

When was the opportunity posted, and what were the closing dates?

It was posted on March 28, 2014. The original closing date and the final closing date were both August 15, 2014.

When was the opportunity archived?

The archive date was September 14, 2014.

Where would applicants typically manage applications and related materials?

The information indicates that applications and related materials are typically managed through CDMRP electronic systems, as reflected by the listed CDMRP Help Desk contact for access or technical issues.

Who should be contacted for access or technical issues related to the full announcement?

The contact point provided was the CDMRP Help Desk at help@eBRAP.org or 301-682-5507.