DoD Peer Reviewed Cancer, Career Development Award | W81XWH 19 PRCRP CDA

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 19 PRCRP CDA

The DoD Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP) Career Development Award (FY19) is a funding opportunity from the Department of Defense (U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, USAMRAA) designed to help independent, early-career investigators launch strong, long-term careers in cancer research. Its main purpose is to pair a promising new principal investigator (PI) with an established cancer researcher who serves as a Career Guide, so the PI can pursue an impactful, discovery-focused research project while also building the skills and professional foundation needed to become a leading independent researcher. The application is expected to center on the PI: the science should be clearly driven by the PI's ideas and intellectual leadership rather than being an extension of the mentor's existing work.

A defining feature of this award is who can serve as the PI. The PI must be an independent early-career researcher or physician-scientist who is within 10 years of completing a terminal degree at the time of the application deadline. Certain time is excluded from that 10-year window, specifically residency, clinical training, and family medical leave, but time spent as a postdoctoral fellow does not stop the clock. Importantly, postdoctoral fellows are not eligible because the program requires independence. Reviewers consider both the PI's track record and the proposed project when judging whether the applicant is well-positioned to contribute to the PRCRP topic areas. They also look at the applicant's prior and current career development support (beyond institutional startup funds) to gauge whether additional developmental funding is truly needed.

Because this mechanism is explicitly about career development, the institution also has to show real commitment to the PI's success. The organization must confirm that the PI will have laboratory space and at least 50 percent protected time to conduct cancer research. This requirement signals that the award is meant to accelerate an independent research trajectory, not to be squeezed around heavy teaching or clinical loads without adequate support.

Another major requirement is a formal Career Development Plan. This plan must be developed with input from the Career Guide, who is expected to be a well-established cancer researcher with a strong publication and funding record. Beyond credentials, the Career Guide must demonstrate a genuine commitment to mentoring the PI and helping them grow into an independent leader in cancer research. The plan should spell out a practical strategy for the PI to gain the skills, expertise, and professional competencies needed to advance at the forefront of cancer research. It should be clearly tied to at least one of the FY19 PRCRP Topic Areas, meaning the research and the PI's training goals should align with the program's stated scientific priorities.

The proposed research itself must fit the PRCRP scope in two ways. First, it must address at least one of the FY19 PRCRP Topic Areas. Second, it must also address at least one of the FY19 PRCRP Military Health Focus Areas and be demonstrably relevant to military populations, including active duty Service members, Veterans, and their beneficiaries. This military relevance is not a vague preference but a core requirement, and applicants are directed to PRCRP and military health resources (including the Military Health System and the Department of Veterans Affairs) to help frame and justify that connection.

From a scientific readiness standpoint, the program does not require preliminary data, which lowers a common barrier for early-career investigators proposing new directions. Even so, the application still has to be convincing: the PI must provide clear logical reasoning, a strong scientific rationale, and a credible approach showing the work is feasible and well thought out. In other words, novelty is welcome, but the proposal cannot rely on speculation alone.

Finally, impact is central to how the DoD frames the value of the award. Applicants must explain how their research could meaningfully affect cancer research and/or patient care. The program emphasizes work that, if successful, could speed up the path from promising research ideas to clinical application, reinforcing the expectation that the project should aim for outcomes that matter beyond the lab.

Administratively, this opportunity was offered as a discretionary program under CFDA 12.420, using grant and cooperative agreement funding instruments. Eligibility was listed as unrestricted (open to many entity types, subject to any specific eligibility clarifications in the full announcement). The FY19 announcement was posted March 21, 2019, with an original closing date of September 11, 2019, and it anticipated making about 25 awards. The award ceiling was listed as 0 in the provided record, which typically indicates applicants needed to rely on the full solicitation for the actual budget cap and allowable costs.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DoD Peer Reviewed Cancer, Career Development Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 21, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 11, 2019. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 25 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for W81XWH 19 PRCRP CDA

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