DoD Rare Cancers, Concept Award

The Department of Defense’s Rare Cancers Research Program (RCRP) Concept Award for fiscal year 2025 is designed to support groundbreaking, high-risk research that has the potential to advance understanding and treatment of rare cancers. Administered by the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) within the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC), the Concept Award aims to fund untested and novel concepts in the field of rare cancers, which are defined for FY25 as cancers affecting six or fewer persons per 100,000 per year in the U.S. The RCRP was established in 2020 following congressional exclusion of rare cancers from the broader Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program, with an FY25 appropriation of $17.5 million. This grant is intended for preliminary, innovative research rather than for continuation or incremental expansion of existing projects. Clinical trials are not permitted under this mechanism. Instead, the focus is on early-stage investigation that may later support the development of larger-scale studies. Applications must align with at least one of three focus areas: understanding biological mechanisms (e.g., molecular pathways, cellular environment), developing rare cancer-specific preclinical models, or identifying novel therapies including drug repurposing. The award allows for up to $140,000 in total costs over a two-year period. Approximately 17 awards are expected, totaling around $2.38 million in funding. Importantly, identifying information about the Principal Investigator (PI), collaborators, or their institutions is strictly prohibited in most sections of the application to ensure a blinded review process. Submissions that breach these anonymity rules will be administratively rejected. Eligibility is broad, covering domestic and international organizations, both public and private, including for-profit and non-profit entities. Investigators must be at or above the postdoctoral level. No cost sharing is required. The application process includes a required pre-application (Letter of Intent) due by July 22, 2025, and a full application due by August 26, 2025. Applications are submitted via eBRAP for pre-application and Grants.gov for full application submission. Applications are evaluated through a two-tier review process involving peer review for scientific merit and programmatic review for alignment with RCRP priorities. Evaluation criteria include the soundness of scientific rationale, feasibility of methods, innovation, potential for impact, and application presentation. Pre-applications are not reviewed or scored, but are required for planning purposes. Applicants are encouraged to begin application preparation early to ensure registration on all required platforms (SAM.gov, eBRAP.org, Grants.gov) and to avoid disqualification due to missed deadlines or formatting issues. Support is available through the eBRAP Help Desk and the Grants.gov Contact Center. The full application must include a project narrative, statement of work, impact and justification statements, and other standard forms. Final award announcements are expected by September 30, 2026, with funds to be used by September 30, 2031.