Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 10 001
Apply for RFA CA 10 001
- The National Institutes of Health in the education health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Innovative and Early Stage Development of Emerging Technologies in Biospecimen Science (R21)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.393 Cancer Cause and Prevention Research 93.394 Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research 93.395 Cancer Treatment Research 93.396 Cancer Biology Research.
- This funding opportunity was created on Oct 26, 2009 and posted on Oct 26, 2009.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 30, 2010. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $1,500,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Small businesses Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education For profit organizations other than small businesses Private institutions of higher education State governments.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) U.S. Territory or Possession.
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Opportunity Summary:
The Innovative and Early Stage Development of Emerging Technologies in Biospecimen Science (R21) opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-CA-10-001) is a National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIH funding announcement aimed at pushing forward early, high-impact technology ideas that can improve how cancer biospecimens are collected and handled before they ever reach the lab bench for molecular testing. The central problem the FOA is trying to solve is "pre-analytical variation" meaning all the quality-changing differences introduced during specimen collection, processing, handling, and storage (and the same issues for derivatives like extracted DNA, RNA, proteins, or other analytes). These variations can quietly distort downstream molecular results, reduce reproducibility across studies and sites, and limit how useful specimens are for cancer research and translational applications.
The purpose of the R21 is to support technically innovative feasibility and early stage development work, not late-stage product refinement. NCI is looking for projects that create or significantly advance tools, devices, instrumentation, or associated methods that can either interrogate biospecimen quality (for example, measuring integrity, degradation, contamination, or other indicators) or actively preserve and protect specimen integrity under real-world conditions. A key emphasis is on technologies that can establish objective verification criteria for quality assessment and quality control, including ways to confirm that proper handling occurred and that a sample is fit for its intended molecular analysis. In practical terms, the FOA is encouraging applicants to build enabling technologies that reduce variability and improve confidence in molecular measurements derived from biospecimens, thereby strengthening cancer biology research and improving the foundations for prevention research, diagnostic development, treatment studies, epidemiology, and work addressing cancer health disparities.
This funding announcement sits within the broader NCI Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program, which is focused on developing novel molecular analysis tools that can accelerate cancer research. It uses the NIH Exploratory/Developmental Grant (R21) mechanism, which is designed for higher-risk, earlier-stage concepts where initial proof-of-feasibility is the main deliverable. The FOA also notes that it runs in parallel with a companion announcement of identical scientific scope that uses the R33 mechanism (RFA-CA-10-002), signaling a pathway where projects that show strong feasibility could potentially align with later-stage development opportunities.
Programmatically, the FOA requires that every project include quantitative milestones, meaning applicants must define measurable technical metrics that demonstrate whether the proposed aims were achieved. This is an important feature of the announcement because it pushes applicants to specify clear performance targets (for example, sensitivity, specificity, stability improvements over time, allowable temperature excursions, measurement precision, or other engineering and analytical benchmarks) rather than relying only on qualitative claims of improvement.
In terms of funding, NCI planned to commit about $1.5 million total in fiscal year 2010 to support up to seven awards under this FOA. The project period is capped at 2 years. The budget limit is $275,000 in direct costs over the two-year R21 period, with no more than $200,000 in direct costs permitted in any single year (effectively requiring applicants to balance spending across the project timeline and remain under the annual cap). There is no cost sharing or matching requirement.
Eligibility is broad and includes many organization types: public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities), for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profit entities), state governments, eligible federal agencies, and non-U.S. (foreign) organizations, as well as U.S. territories or possessions. The FOA is categorized as a discretionary grant opportunity under the broad activity area of education and health, and it aligns with several NIH cancer-related CFDA numbers spanning prevention, detection and diagnosis, treatment, and cancer biology research.
Key administrative dates included a posted/creation date of October 26, 2009, and a closing date of September 30, 2010, with an archive date of October 31, 2010. The full announcement was hosted through the NIH grants site (grants.nih.gov), and contact support for access and linking issues was routed through the NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1) What is this funding opportunity?
The Innovative and Early Stage Development of Emerging Technologies in Biospecimen Science (R21) is a National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIH funding opportunity focused on early, high-impact technology ideas that improve how cancer biospecimens are collected, processed, handled, and stored before molecular testing. The Funding Opportunity Number is RFA-CA-10-001.
2) What problem is the FOA trying to solve?
The FOA targets "pre-analytical variation," meaning quality-changing differences introduced during specimen collection, processing, handling, and storage. These variations can also affect specimen derivatives such as extracted DNA, RNA, proteins, or other analytes, and can quietly distort downstream molecular results and reduce reproducibility across studies and sites.
3) What types of projects does the R21 support under this FOA?
This R21 supports technically innovative feasibility and early stage development work. The emphasis is on creating or significantly advancing tools, devices, instrumentation, or associated methods that improve biospecimen quality assessment or preservation under real-world conditions.
4) What is the main scientific focus of the proposed technologies?
Proposed technologies should either (a) interrogate biospecimen quality (for example, measuring integrity, degradation, contamination, or other indicators) or (b) actively preserve and protect specimen integrity during collection, processing, handling, or storage.
5) Does the FOA emphasize quality assessment and quality control (QA/QC)?
Yes. A key emphasis is on establishing objective verification criteria for quality assessment and quality control, including ways to confirm proper handling occurred and that a sample is fit for its intended molecular analysis.
6) Is this opportunity intended for late-stage product refinement?
No. The purpose is early stage development and feasibility, not late-stage product refinement.
7) How does this FOA relate to the NCI IMAT Program?
This FOA sits within the broader NCI Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program, which focuses on developing novel molecular analysis tools that can accelerate cancer research.
8) What grant mechanism is used?
The FOA uses the NIH Exploratory/Developmental Grant (R21) mechanism, which is designed for higher-risk, earlier-stage concepts where initial proof-of-feasibility is the main deliverable.
9) Is there a companion opportunity for later-stage development?
Yes. The FOA notes a companion announcement with identical scientific scope that uses the R33 mechanism (RFA-CA-10-002), indicating a pathway where projects demonstrating strong feasibility may align with later-stage development opportunities.
10) Are quantitative milestones required?
Yes. Every project must include quantitative milestones. Applicants are expected to define measurable technical metrics that demonstrate whether proposed aims were achieved.
11) What kinds of milestone metrics are expected?
The FOA highlights metrics such as sensitivity, specificity, stability improvements over time, allowable temperature excursions, measurement precision, and other engineering and analytical benchmarks, rather than only qualitative claims of improvement.
12) How much funding was planned for this FOA?
NCI planned to commit about $1.5 million total in fiscal year 2010 to support up to seven awards under this FOA.
13) What is the maximum project period?
The project period is capped at 2 years.
14) What is the budget limit?
The budget limit is $275,000 in direct costs total over the two-year R21 period, with no more than $200,000 in direct costs permitted in any single year.
15) Does the FOA require cost sharing or matching?
No. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement.
16) Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad and includes: public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profit entities); state governments; eligible federal agencies; non-U.S. (foreign) organizations; and U.S. territories or possessions.
17) Are for-profit organizations eligible?
Yes. For-profit organizations are included among eligible applicants, including small businesses and other for-profit entities.
18) Are foreign (non-U.S.) organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA states that non-U.S. (foreign) organizations are eligible.
19) What types of research or downstream applications could benefit from this work?
The FOA frames benefits across cancer biology research and translational applications, including prevention research, diagnostic development, treatment studies, epidemiology, and work addressing cancer health disparities, by improving confidence in molecular measurements derived from biospecimens.
20) What are the key administrative dates listed?
The posted/creation date is October 26, 2009. The closing date is September 30, 2010. The archive date is October 31, 2010.
21) Where was the full announcement hosted?
The full announcement was hosted through the NIH grants site (grants.nih.gov).
22) Who is listed for support related to access and linking issues?
Contact support for access and linking issues was routed through the NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster.
23) How is this FOA categorized in terms of activity area?
The FOA is categorized as a discretionary grant opportunity under the broad activity area of education and health.
24) Does the FOA mention alignment with NIH cancer-related CFDA areas?
Yes. It aligns with several NIH cancer-related CFDA numbers spanning prevention, detection and diagnosis, treatment, and cancer biology research.
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