December 8, 2021
PA-20-272 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional).
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is associated with the Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN) of the Cancer Moonshot Initiative. This FOA invites current NCI awardees to apply for supplemental funding to harmonize their existing single cell sequencing and spatial imaging datasets with HTAN data and metadata standards. Datasets will be made available through HTAN and/or NCI data resources to facilitate future secondary data use.
Research Objectives
The Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN) was established as part of the NCI Cancer Moonshot Initiative. The goal of HTAN is to produce molecularly defined, single-cell spatial atlases of tumors as they progress from pre-cancer to cancer, transition from locally invasive to metastatic disease, and respond or become resistant to therapy. The HTAN consists of a network of ten multidisciplinary research centers (five focused on pre-cancers and five focused on advanced cancers) and a Data Coordinating Center (DCC) to ensure data sharing and public release (https://humantumoratlas.org).
HTAN teams employ a range of technologies, including single-cell measurements and high-resolution imaging technologies, and collect longitudinal clinical data. These multimodal data inform our understanding of tumor architecture, cellular composition, molecular networks, and their impact on cancer progression over time. The resulting tumor atlases are expected to advance our understanding of cancer biology, with the potential to improve cancer prediction, detection, prevention, and therapeutic approaches. HTAN will also provide all multiomic and imaging data for reuse by the cancer research community.
As part of the data generation and dissemination process, HTAN has developed detailed data and metadata standards (https://data.humantumoratlas.org/standards) to facilitate data integration and reuse. These standards are documented in the cancer Data Standards Registry and Repository (caDSR) (https://cdebrowser.nci.nih.gov/cdebrowserClient/cdeBrowser.html#/search) as common data elements (CDEs). The technologies and data types used and generated by HTAN are becoming more widely adopted by the broader cancer research community and this FOA aims to support the adoption of HTAN data and metadata standards for existing datasets. These Data Harmonization Supplements will support NCI grantees already generating HTAN-like data, to harmonize their datasets with HTAN data and metadata standards to facilitate interoperability with HTAN data. Datasets will be made available through HTAN and/or NCI data resources. Awardees will have the opportunity to become HTAN associate members which would enable them to participate in HTAN meetings, working groups, and other activities.
Applicants submitting administrative supplement requests in response to this NOSI must:
- Identify and describe an existing dataset for a data type that has a defined HTAN data standard (https://data.humantumoratlas.org/standards). This should include but not be limited to the type(s) of molecular data, associated biospecimen and clinical data, cancer type, number of samples, and a brief description of the original purpose of the dataset and biological or clinical question it was addressing;
- Describe how the molecular, biospecimen, and clinical data will be mapped to the HTAN data standards;
- Describe the potential value of the dataset to the broader cancer research community; and,
- Include a resource sharing plan that describes how data can be shared through HTAN and/or NCI data resources. The expectation is that all relevant and feasible data and metadata fields (https://data.humantumoratlas.org/standards) be collected and submitted.
While applicants with relevant data from any cancer types may apply, applicants with relevant data from racially/ethnically diverse populations, rare cancers, cancers without current HTAN data, precancer samples, and/or samples that include longitudinal clinical data are particularly encouraged to apply.
Responsiveness
Applications that request support for new data generation, must focus on a data type that lacks a defined HTAN data standard, or that do not include a data sharing plan will not be reviewed. Applicants interested in the NCI’s support for the de novo development of data visualization software methods, algorithms, and tools may be responsive to FOAs associated with the Informatics Technologies for Cancer Research (ITCR) program.
Investigators are encouraged to discuss their application with the scientific/research contact listed in this notice prior to submission.
Application and Submission Information
Applications for this initiative must be submitted using the following opportunity or its subsequent reissued equivalent:
PA-20-272 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional).
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and the funding opportunity announcement used for submission must be followed, with the following additions:
Requests for support of clinical trials will not be accepted and/or considered in response to this funding opportunity announcement.
All supplement requests must be submitted electronically through eRA Commons, see NOT-OD-20-128 for more information.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to notify the NCI program contact (Sean Hanlon, Ph.D.) via email (sean.hanlon@nih.gov) that a request has been submitted in response to this NOSI to facilitate efficient processing of the request.
Eligibility and Eligible Individuals (Program Director/Principal Investigator):
- Applicant(s) must hold an active grant or cooperative agreement from the NCI.
- To be eligible, the parent award must be able to receive funds in FY22.
- The administrative supplement application must be within the scope of the parent award.
- For supplements to parent awards that include multiple program directors/principal investigators (PD/PIs), the supplement may be requested by any or all of the PD/PIs (in accordance with the existing leadership plan) and submitted by the awardee institution of the parent award.
- Early-Stage Investigators (ESIs) are encouraged to apply.
- NOTE: There is no requirement for the parent award to have been supported via HTAN or any other Cancer Moonshot funding opportunity.
Application Due Date:
- Applications will be accepted starting January 1, 2022.
- Applications can be submitted on a rolling basis for possible funding in FY2022.
- This NOSI will expire on July 31, 2022. However, continuation of this NOSI is contingent upon availability of funds, and the NOSI may be terminated before the current expiration date.
Budget:
- Supplement budget requests must reflect the actual need of the proposed project and cannot exceed $40,000 in direct costs exclusive of Facilities and Administrative costs on sub-awards, and the budget cannot exceed the direct costs of the current parent award.
- The application budget is limited to one year only.
- The earliest anticipated start date is March 1, 2022.
- If the budget includes a request for salary support, it is required to include a justification and clear details on what each person will be responsible for.
- If supporting students and/or postdoctoral fellows, please indicate if they are already working in the lab or when they will be recruited. A description of how the student/postdoctoral fellow will be supported after the conclusion of the one-year supplement must be included.
- It is not appropriate to have to be named (TBN) personnel listed as part of the budget request.
- The administrative supplement awards pursuant to this opportunity are contingent upon the availability of funds from NCI and the receipt of a sufficient number of meritorious requests.
Submitting Applications
- Applicants should begin the supplement application abstract by stating “This application is being submitted in response to the Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) identified as NOT-CA-22-013.”
- For funding consideration, applicants must include “NOT-CA-22-013” (without quotation marks) in the Agency Routing Identifier field (box 4b) of the SF424 R&R form. Applications without this information in box 4b will not be considered for this initiative.
- Page Limits: The Research Strategy section of the application is limited to three (3) pages (excluding references).
- Resource Sharing Plan: Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans as provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following modifications:
- All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, should address a Data Sharing Plan.
- Addressing the Cancer Moonshot Public Access Pilot Program: Utilizing the provision outlined in the 21st Century Cures Act, NCI has established a data sharing policy for projects that are funded as part of the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative that requires applicants to submit a Public Access and Data Sharing Plan that: (1) describes their proposed process for making resulting Publications and to the extent possible, the Underlying Primary Data immediately and broadly available to the public and; (2) if applicable, provides a justification to NCI if such sharing is not possible. NCI will give competitive preference and funding priority to applications with a data sharing plan that complies with the strategy described here. The data sharing plan will become a term and condition of award.
Review and Selection Process
NCI will conduct administrative reviews of applications and will support the most meritorious applications submitted for consideration, based upon availability of funds. Additionally, Program staff will evaluate applications using the following selection factors:
Critical Considerations:
- Realistic scope of work and demonstrated understanding of HTAN data standards and how the applicant’s dataset(s) can be mapped to the HTAN data standards.
- The potential value of the proposed dataset for secondary research use.
- The size, scope, and uniqueness of the proposed dataset.
- Acceptability of the resource sharing plan.
Sean Hanlon, Ph.D.
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-781-3310
Email: sean.hanlon@nih.gov
and Human Services (HHS)
