Medical Research Grant - Brevard

The Community Foundation for Brevard (CFB) administers its competitive Medical Research Grant Program through funding provided by the Kenneth R. Finken and Dorothy Hallam Finken Endowment Fund and the Frank R. Leslie Fund. This program supports research in Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and other significant illnesses, though for the 2025 cycle, funding is dedicated exclusively to cancer research. Recommendations for awards are made by the Medical Research Advisory Committee, which includes individuals from diverse backgrounds in both basic and clinical research and practice. Applicants are encouraged to prepare their proposals so they are understandable to a broad medical and scientific audience. The 2025 funding priorities include four equally important areas: social and behavioral interventions addressing daily life challenges faced by cancer patients from diagnosis onward; social and behavioral interventions focused on the delivery of care for family caregivers; public health education and awareness initiatives aimed at prevention, screening, or treatment of cancer—particularly within underserved or underrepresented communities—with an emphasis on specific cancers such as lung, breast, cervical, prostate, colon, and melanoma; and clinical education or evidence-based guidance for healthcare professionals across all stages of cancer care. The program does not fund basic bench or laboratory science projects. For the 2025 cycle, at least one award of up to $114,000 is expected to be available, and funded projects will have an eighteen-month performance period. Eligible applicants include accredited academic medical centers, universities, or research institutions with 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. The Principal Investigator (PI) must be based in Florida and conducting research in the state, hold a research position at an eligible institution, and have the independence and institutional support to carry out the proposed research. Only one proposal per PI, including as a co-PI, may be submitted, and all prior grants must be closed with final reports submitted before a PI may apply again. A PI is limited to two grants within a six-year period. Applications must be submitted online through the CFB grant portal, and organizations may need to contact the foundation to confirm or create an account. The anticipated opening date for the application portal is August 12, 2025, with a closing date of September 9, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Award announcements will be made by November 3, 2025. Applications require detailed organizational information, a proposal overview including a structured abstract and lay summary, project personnel descriptions, and a proposal narrative outlining significance, aims, methodology, recruitment, research procedures, analysis plans, and dissemination strategies. Financial documentation must include a detailed project budget identifying the amount requested from the grant and allowable direct costs, which may include salaries, fringe benefits, supplies, certain equipment, travel, consultant costs, IRB/IACUC fees, consortium or contractual costs, registry data fees, research participant incentives, and justified administrative costs. Indirect costs are capped at 20 percent of total direct costs. Additional required attachments include biographical sketches for all PI(s) and co-PI(s), human or animal subject assurances with IRB/IACUC approval if applicable, a signed authorization form, and letters of support from collaborators. Compliance with grant terms is required, and any changes to project scope, budget, or schedule must be reported to CFB. A final report is due one month after the grant’s end date, and a follow-up report is due one year later to document subsequent funding, publications, or national research funding that resulted from the project. Questions about the program can be directed to Donna Sewell at 321-752-5505 or DonnaS@CFBrevard.org. The program’s physical office is located at 1361 Bedford Drive, Suite 102, Melbourne, Florida 32940.