The Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has issued a request for proposals for the Young Investigator Award (YIA) 2012 aimed at providing funding to promising investigators to encourage and promote quality research in clinical oncology. The purpose of this award is to fund physicians during the transition from a fellowship program to a faculty appointment. The Conquer Cancer Foundation welcomes application submissions in all oncology subspecialties.
The Conquer Cancer Foundation works towards creating a world free from the fear of cancer by funding breakthrough research, by sharing knowledge with physicians and patients worldwide, and by supporting initiatives to ensure that all people have access to high-quality cancer care
Funding Available
The total award amount is $50,000 for one year, payable on July 1 and January 1 in two equal installments. The number of YIA grants in each funding cycle is not predetermined by the Conquer Cancer Foundation. Awards are given based on individual merit and availability of funds.
Eligibility Criteria
The Young Investigator Award is intended to support proposals with a clinical research focus. ASCO’s definition of clinical research is “hypothesis-driven research that employs measurements in whole patients or normal human subjects, in conjunction with laboratory measurements as appropriate, on the subjects of clinical biology, natural history, prevention, screening, diagnosis, therapy, or epidemiology of neoplastic disease” (Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vol. 14, No. 2, 1996 pp. 666-670). In Young Investigator Award proposals, preclinical in vitro and/or animal studies are acceptable as long as the outcome of these studies would ultimately lead to patient-oriented clinical research. Project proposals should have measurable outcomes during the one year grant period.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
– Be a physician (MD, DO, or international equivalent) working in any country who is currently in the last two years of his/her final subspecialty training at an academic medical institution at the time of grant submission. Examples of subspecialty training include, but are not limited to, a hematology-oncology fellowship, a surgical oncology fellowship, or a radiation oncology residency.
– An institutional commitment for a faculty appointment at the time of grant submission is not required, but the applicant should be working in an oncology laboratory or clinical research setting.
– Have a mentor in the proposed research field from the sponsoring institution who must provide an letter of support. The mentor must assume responsibility and provide guidance for the research. If the mentor is not a Full ASCO member, a supporting letter from a Full ASCO member from the sponsoring institution must be included.
– Be planning an investigative career in clinical oncology. Be a Full Member (formerly Active Member) of ASCO or Member in Training (formerly Active-Junior Member) or have submitted a membership application with the grant application.
– Be able to commit at least 60% of full- time effort in research (applies to total research, not just the proposed project) during the award period.
– A United States-trained MD, PhD is eligible if both degrees are completed prior to the start of the grant period. For foreign-trained physicians, eligibility for those currently enrolled in PhD programs will be determined on a case by case basis.
Eligible physicians are allowed to hold only one grant from the Conquer Cancer Foundation at a time.
Last date for submission of proposals is September 28, 2011
For more information and details, you can visit this link.
