DoD Prostate Cancer Physician Research Award

The Physician Research Award supports a mentored research experience to prepare physicians with clinical duties and/or responsibilities for productive careers in prostate cancer research. The mentored physician is considered the Principal Investigator (PI) of the application. This award emphasizes equally the quality of the proposed research project and the career development of the PI, which should prepare physicians for careers in basic, population science, translational, or clinical prostate cancer research. All applications for the Physician Research Award are to be written by the PI, with appropriate direction from the Mentor(s).

• Principal Investigator: Physicians with clinical duties and/or responsibilities who, at the application submission deadline, are either in the last year of an accredited graduate medical education program as a resident or fellow, or within 3 years of having initiated an appointment as an Instructor, Assistant Professor, or equivalent, are eligible to apply. The PI must demonstrate a commitment to a career as an investigator at the forefront of prostate cancer research and clinical practice; however, the PI is not required to have previous prostate cancer research experience. The award is intended to ensure protection of at least 40% of the PI’s time for prostate cancer research, which is not required to be exclusive of this award but can include effort dedicated to other prostate cancer research projects.

• Mentor(s): This award requires the involvement of at least one designated Mentor with an established research program in prostate cancer, evidenced by recent publications, active funding, and successful mentorship. In addition, the Mentor(s) must demonstrate a commitment to advancing the PI’s career in prostate cancer research.

• Research Approach: Proposed research ideas are required to address one or more of the PCRP Overarching Challenges. The scientific rationale and experimental methodology should demonstrate in-depth analysis of the research problem presented. The feasibility of the research design and methods should be well defined, and a clear plan should be articulated as to how the proposed goals of the project can be achieved. The inclusion of preliminary data relevant to prostate cancer and the proposed project is encouraged but not required. Any preliminary data provided should be from the PI, Mentor(s), or member(s) of the collaborating team. Additionally, required resources should be identified and supported through documentation.

• Researcher Development Plan: An individualized researcher development plan is required and should be prepared with appropriate guidance from the Mentor(s). The researcher development plan should include a clearly articulated strategy for acquiring the necessary skills, competence, and expertise that will enable the PI to successfully complete the proposed research project and foster the PI’s development as an independent prostate cancer researcher. An environment appropriate to the proposed mentoring and research project must be clearly described, although any deficiencies of resources and/or mentorship at the PI’s institution can be mitigated through collaboration(s) with other institutions. If the PI will be utilizing resources at another institution to successfully complete the proposed project, then the PI is strongly encouraged to designate a co-Mentor at the collaborating institution.

• Impact: The proposed research must address and provide a solution to one or more of the PCRP Overarching Challenges, and ultimately should have the potential to make a significant impact on the program’s mission of eliminating death from prostate cancer and enhancing the well-being of Service members, Veterans, and all men experiencing the impact of the disease.

Investigators are strongly encouraged to incorporate the following components into their study design where appropriate in order to maximize the potential impact of the proposed research project: authentication of proposed cell lines; statistical rigor of preclinical animal experiments; incorporation of experiments to assess clinical relevance and translatability of findings. As such, the PCRP-funded Prostate Cancer Biorepository Network (PCBN) (http://www.prostatebiorepository.org) and/or the North Carolina – Louisiana Prostate Cancer Project (PCaP) (https://pcap.bioinf.unc.edu) are important resources to consider if retrospectively collected human anatomical substances or correlated data are critical to the proposed studies. Studies utilizing data derived from large patient studies that include long-term health records, biospecimen repositories, and pre-existing research, and that apply state-of-the-art genomic and/or proteomic analysis, bioinformatics, and/or mathematical models to such data are also encouraged. 

The proposed research must be relevant to active duty Service members, Veterans, military beneficiaries, and/or the American public.

The anticipated direct costs budgeted for the entire period of performance for an FY18 PCRP Physician Research Award will not exceed $750,000. Refer to Section II.D.5, Funding Restrictions, for detailed funding information. 

The types of awards made under the Program Announcement will be assistance agreements (grants or cooperative agreements). The level of involvement on the part of the Department of Defense (DoD) during project performance is the key factor in determining whether to award a grant or cooperative agreement.

Extramural Organizations: An assistance agreement (grant or cooperative agreement) is appropriate when the Federal Government transfers a “thing of value” to a “state, local government,” or “other recipient” to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States, instead of acquiring property or service for the direct benefit and use of the U.S. Government. An assistance agreement can take the form of a grant or cooperative agreement. If “no substantial involvement” on the part of the funding agency is anticipated, a grant award will be made (31 USC 6304). Conversely, if substantial involvement on the part of the funding agency is anticipated, a cooperative agreement will be made (31 USC 6305) and the award will identify the specific substantial involvement. Substantial involvement may include collaboration, participation, or intervention in the research to be performed under the award. The award type, along with the start date, will be determined during the negotiation process.