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Melanoma

NEWS RELEASE

Released: March 23, 2020

Defense Health Program
Department of Defense Melanoma Research Program
Anticipated Funding Opportunities for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20)

The FY20 Defense Appropriations Act provides funding to the Department of Defense Melanoma Research Program (MRP) to support innovative, high-impact melanoma research. As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency J9, Research and Development Directorate manages the Defense Health Program (DHP) Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriation. The managing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC).

The MRP is providing the information in this pre-announcement to allow investigators time to plan and develop ideas for submission to the anticipated FY20 funding opportunity. This pre-announcement should not be construed as an obligation by the Government. The FY20 MRP Program Announcements and General Application Instructions for the following award mechanisms will be posted on the Grants.gov website. Pre-application and application deadlines will be available when the Program Announcements are released. 

Applications for the Idea Award, Translational Research Award, Team Science Award, and the Mid-Career Accelerator Award submitted to the FY20 MRP must address one or more of the following focus areas:

  • Prevention of melanoma initiation factors (e.g., UV radiation)
  • Prevention of melanomagenesis and precursor lesions (e.g., novel genetic and epigenetic drivers, oncogene induced senescence)
  • Understanding the tumor microenvironment
    • Primary Tumor
    • Regional Nodes
    • Distal Nodes
  • Bioengineering (e.g., computational, imaging) approaches to address diagnostics, high risk markers, dormancy, and metastasis
  • Therapeutic Prevention (e.g., interruption of disease progression, recurrence)
  • Minimal Residual Disease (e.g., chemoprevention, micro-metastasis)

Applications for the Technology Development Partnership Award submitted to the FY20 MRP must address the focus area: Bioengineering (e.g., computational, imaging) approaches to address diagnostics, high risk markers, dormancy, and metastasis.

The MRP challenges the research community to redefine the concept of prevention and has issued a FY20 MRP Challenge Statement that should be considered when responding to the FY20 MRP Focus Areas and funding opportunities.

The MRP encourages studies for rare melanomas across the entire spectrum from initiation to distant macro-metastasis.


Award Mechanism PI Eligibility Key Mechanism Elements Funding
Idea Award Independent investigators with a faculty-level appointment (or equivalent).
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports new ideas that represent innovative, high-risk/high-gain approaches to melanoma research.
  • Emphasis on Innovation and Impact.
  • Must address at least one of the FY20 Focus Areas.
  • Preliminary data are not required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $300,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.
Mid-Career Accelerator Award Assistant or Associate Professors more than 7 years post-first faculty appointment.

Instructors and Full Professors are not eligible
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports mid-career researchers to conduct impactful melanoma research.
  • Must address at least one of the FY20 Focus Areas.
  • Must show evidence of at least one peer reviewed extramural funding award.
  • Preliminary data is required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $700,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.
Team Science Award At least two and up to three investigators must partner in one overarching multidisciplinary research study.

Initiating Principal Investigator:
Independent investigators at or above the level of Associate Professor (or equivalent).

Inclusion of at least one military, VA investigator, or early career investigator is encouraged.
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports new or existing partnerships between two or three independent investigators focusing research across the whole research spectrum.
  • Investigators are expected to demonstrate within the application, the synergistic components (i.e., leveraging disciplines, expertise or critical resources) that will significantly advance the project such that the research outcomes as a whole will be realized rapidly and efficiently and could not otherwise be accomplished through independent efforts of a single investigator.
  • Emphasis on Synergy, Multi-disciplinary research, and Impact.
  • Must address at least one of the FY20 Focus Areas.
  • Preliminary data are required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $700,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.
Technology Development Partnership Award Two independent investigators with a faculty-level appointment (or equivalent).
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports new or existing partnerships between two independent investigators focusing on bioengineering approaches to address diagnostics, high risk markers, dormancy, and metastasis.
  • One partner must have a background in biomedical science, and one must have a background in the physical sciences (e.g. engineering, computational science, bioinformatics, or computer science).
  • Preliminary data is required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $700,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.
Translational Research Award Independent investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports studies aiming to leverage existing biobanks, biorepositories, ongoing or completed clinical trials to address a translational question or problem in melanoma.
  • Emphasis on Translation and Impact.
  • Must address at least one of the FY20 Focus Areas.
  • Preliminary data is required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $600,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.
Translational Research Award – Collaborator Option Two independent investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports two investigators in a joint study aiming to leverage existing biobanks, biorepositories, ongoing or completed clinical trials to address a translational question or problem in melanoma.
  • Emphasis on Translation and Impact.
  • Must address at least one of the FY20 Focus Areas.
  • Preliminary data is required.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
  • Maximum funding of $700,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline. All applications must conform to the final Program Announcements and General Application Instructions that will be available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website. The application package containing the required forms for each award mechanism will also be found on Grants.gov. A listing of all CDMRP and other USAMRDC extramural funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420. 

Submission deadlines are not available until the Program Announcements are released. For email notification when Program Announcements are released, subscribe to program-specific news and updates under “Email Subscriptions” on the eBRAP homepage at https://eBRAP.org. For more information about the MRP or other CDMRP-administered programs, please visit the CDMRP website (https://cdmrp.army.mil).

Point of Contact:

CDMRP Public Affairs
301-619-9783
usarmy.detrick.medcom-cdmrp.mbx.cdmrp-public-affairs@mail.mil


Last updated Thursday, May 26, 2022