Key Dates

Related Announcements

October 9, 2020 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional). See NOFO PA-20-272. 

Issued by

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Purpose

Through this Notice of Special Interest (NOSI), the National Cancer Institute (NCI) encourages eligible grantees to apply for administrative supplements to support cancer research career development of early-stage Low- and Middle-Income Country (LMIC) investigators (ESLIs). The NCI Global Oncology Mentored Research Supplement initiative is designed to support high-quality mentored research experiences for ESLIs within the context of NCI extramural research projects. The overarching goal of this supplement is to strengthen the capacity of LMIC investigators to conduct high-quality independent and/or collaborative research in their home institutions thereby generating context-appropriate evidence to address the growing cancer problem in LMICs.

Background

Cancer poses an increasing health and economic burden globally, but the impact is especially profound in LMICs where as many as 70% of all cancer deaths occur. Globally, cancer incidence and mortality are predicted to continue to increase over the next several decades, accelerating most rapidly in LMICs where capacity for cancer control is limited.There is an urgent need to ramp up cancer research in LMICs to generate LMIC-specific data/evidence to inform cancer prevention and control efforts locally. LMIC investigators are well positioned to lead innovative and impactful research in LMICs as they best understand the local cultures, as well as the unique needs, challenges, and opportunities. As global research collaborations are becoming increasingly critical to answer the complex cancer research questions in LMICs, concerted and deliberate efforts are needed to strengthen the research capacity of LMIC investigators to maximize research impact and foster equity in global research collaborations.

Program Objectives

Research Mentoring and Career Development

The NCI Global Oncology Mentored Research Supplements provide additional funds to established NCI extramural investigators who hold active grants or cooperative agreements to recruit and mentor ESLIs who seek to establish independent cancer research careers at their LMIC home institutions. These administrative supplements will provide support and “protected time” for an intensive, mentored research and career development experiences for ESLIs. The experiences must serve as a means of assisting the ESLIs to develop into independent and productive cancer researchers in basic, clinical, translational or population sciences.

This initiative is designed to increase opportunities for ESLIs to access high-quality mentorship to foster their career-readiness, project efficiency and productivity, sound leadership, and competitive edge leading to research independence. NCI investigators who wish to mentor ESLIs must be committed to direct supervision and mentorship of ESLIs’ research projects as well as their career development. The research and career mentoring supported under this NOSI is expected to equip ESLIs with:

• Technical research competencies needed for the conduct of high-quality research: a strong foundation in rigorous research design, experimental methods, and analytic techniques appropriate for cancer research inquiry in basic, clinical, translational or population sciences; ability to conceptualize and think through research problems with increasing independence; and experience conducting research using appropriate state-of-the-art methods.
• Professional competencies needed to establish successful research career: practical experiences to manage research project, establish and maintain effective scientific collaborations, compete successfully for research funding, engage local policymakers and communities in research, communicate and disseminate research findings to diverse audiences, and mentor the next generation of LMIC investigators.

To further enrich ESLI’s experience, the applicant institution is expected to provide peer-mentoring opportunities by pairing ESLIs with their counterparts on the NCI parent award. Peer mentoring offers a great platform to further strengthen and foster long-term relationships that might potentially lead to new equitable and impactful collaborations.

ESLIs supported under this supplement are encouraged to submit applications for fellowships, career development awards, research grants, and other sources of independent support before the supplement period ends.

Supplemental Research Projects

To accomplish the stated objectives, this award requires supported ESLIs to conduct well-defined supplemental research projects at their home institutions under the supervision and mentorship of NCI extramural investigators (primary mentors). The proposed supplemental research project is anticipated to generate/contribute towards data/evidence to address local cancer problem. As such, the primary mentor is expected to work with the ESLI to design a contextualized research project and mentoring plan/activities. The award will support primary mentor’s travel to ESLI’s home institution to familiarize themselves with the local research needs, culture and environment to further inform the research project and mentoring activities. It is expected that the supplemental research project will be based at the ESLI’s home institution to afford the ESLI an immediate opportunity to apply/practice the newly acquired skills/techniques their own local research contexts/settings. The ESLI may travel to the sponsoring institutions to learn and/or get ‘protected time’ to focus on honing specific skills/techniques, but ESLI’s stay at the sponsoring institution should be limited and efforts made to ensure that the skills/techniques acquired at the sponsoring institution are relevant and applicable to ESLI’s own local research contexts/settings.

The supplemental research projects supported under this opportunity may span the entire breadth of NCI-supported research portfolio including, but not limited to, CGH areas of scientific focus; new technologies, implementation science, cancer health disparities, clinical trials, and cancer etiology.  If the parent grant has multiple research projects, the supplement project must not only be within the general scope of the parent grant, but also be relevant to a specific project listed within the parent grant. To meet the expectations of this award, a parent award may wish to add a foreign component. Adding a foreign component under a grant or cooperative agreement to a domestic or foreign organization requires NCI prior approval. The applicant institution should request this approval prior to submitting the application.

Eligibility

Eligible Parent Awards and Number of Applications

For the purpose of this NOSI, eligible activity codes for applications are limited to the following: R01, R35, R37, P01, P20, P50, U01, U19, U54, UH2, UH3, UG1, UG3 or UM1. No other grant or cooperative agreement mechanisms are eligible for this program.

Note: Adding a foreign component under a grant or cooperative agreement to a domestic or foreign organization requires NCI prior approval.

A parent award may support more than one ESLI on a supplement; however, each request must be strongly justified and include assurances that each candidate will have a scientifically distinct research project and will receive appropriate mentoring. NCI staff will consider the nature of the parent grant, the circumstances of the request, and the program balance.

ESLI candidates may receive support from only one administrative supplement at a time, but may be supported by more than one supplement during the development of their research careers. Priority will be given to ESLIs who have not previously been supported under this mechanism. Support under the supplement is not transferable to another individual or transportable to another institution.

Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI)

PD/PI must hold an active eligible grant or cooperative agreement supported through NCI, and the research proposed in the supplement must be accomplished within the competitive segment of the active award. The PI of the parent grant is ultimately responsible for the supplement

For supplements to parent awards that include multiple PDs/PIs, the supplement may be requested by any or all of the PDs/PIs (in accordance with the existing leadership plan) and submitted by the recipient institution of the parent award.

In addition, sub-project directors on multi-component research grants (e.g., P01, P50, U54) may request supplements to their project through the overall PD/PI of the grant.

Mentor(s)

The primary mentor will be an active investigator in the area of the proposed supplemental research project and be committed both to the career development of the ESLI candidate and to the direct supervision of the mentee’s research. The primary mentor does not need to be the PI of the parent grant. However, the PI of the parent grant must be in concurrence with the supplement application.

The primary mentor(s) is expected to work with the ESLI to design an appropriate supplemental research project, and in preparing the application.

More than one mentor may be involved (as a mentoring team) if this is deemed advantageous for providing expert advice in all aspects of the research career development program. In such cases, one individual must be identified as the primary mentor who will coordinate the ESLI candidate’s research project, and the role of each mentor and relationship to the ESLI be clearly defined.

This administrative supplement encourages mid-level career investigators (assistant/associate professor level) to serve as primary mentors. The PI may act as a co-mentor if the primary mentor is relatively junior.

The primary mentor and/or the mentoring team must demonstrate a strong mentoring track record and experience conducting research in LMICs.

The PI is strongly encouraged to provide peer-mentoring opportunities by assigning an early-stage investigator in his/her team to work with the ESLI.

ESLI Candidates

For the purpose of this NOSI, institutions are encouraged to identify LMIC investigators who are in the early stages of establishing their independent research careers, and who demonstrate potential to succeed. Eligible candidates must meet all criteria below:

• Research or clinician scientists who is a citizen or permanent resident of an eligible LMIC and who at the time of the award, may not be a citizen nor non-citizen national of the United States nor have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States. LMICs are defined by the World Bank classification system, according to Gross National Income per capita as "low-income," "lower-middle-income," and "upper-middle-income". In this program, consistent with NIH and Fogarty programs, "eligible LMICs" do not include G20 countries in the "upper-middle-income country" category (UMIC) for funding (except for Sub-Saharan Africa).
• Completed a doctoral degree or its equivalent such as a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Doctor of Medicine (MD) or a certified equivalent degree. In many LMICs, Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree (MB ChB, MB BS, BM MCh, etc.) is considered the highest degree of study and equivalent to a doctoral degree.
• Hold academic junior faculty position or research scientist appointment at an LMIC institution (including but not limited to instructors, lecturers, assistant professors), and wish to participate in ongoing research projects while further developing their own research potential, to enhance their research skills and professional competencies to establish an independent research career in home institution.
• An individual who has received previous funding from NIH as an independent PD/PI on a research grant or as the project leader on a component of a program project or center grant or as PD/PI on an individual research career development award, is not eligible. 

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 PA-20-272 must be followed, with the following additions:

• For funding consideration, applicants must include “NOT-CA-24-028” (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.
• 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-24-028”.
• Budget and Period of Support:
  • The budget should not exceed $125,000 in total costs. The application budget is limited to 1 year only.
  • The project and budget periods must be within the currently approved project period for the existing parent award.
  • For ESLI, allowed costs include salary and fringe benefits consistent with institutional policy and support mentoring and training activities including travel to a U.S. grantee institution to participate in specific training activities or travel to workshops/conferences, computer and internet access, publications
  • For Mentors, allowed costs include support to travel to the ELSI’s LMIC institution consistent with activities proposed in the application, and limited support for mentoring-related activities. Salary and fringe benefits for PI and/or mentors are not allowed.
  • Limited support for research expenses related to achieving the proposed objectives of the supplemental research project are allowed. 
  • NCI staff will consider whether the budget and the requested period of support are fully justified and reasonable in relation to the proposed research and mentoring activities.
  • Research and Mentoring Strategy:
    The research strategy section is limited to no more than six (6) pages and should include the following:
    • Research project: Include a summary of the funded parent award or project and a description of the supplemental research project that will be conducted by the ESLI candidate, including the supplemental research aims and study design, methods and techniques, how the proposed project relates to one or more aims of the parent project, additional value provided to the underlying funded research, and the relevance to ESLI’s local context/settings. 
    • Research Mentoring plan: The application must clearly indicate the assigned primary mentor provide a detailed description of the role of the mentor(s) in supervising and mentoring the ESLI, including how mentorship will occur across multiple institutions. The strategy should describe how the ESLI candidate will contribute intellectually to the research and enhance her/his research skills and knowledge in the selected area of cancer research. It should be clear how the proposed activities will lead to the enhancement of the research capability of the ESLI.
    • Career Development plan: The application should include an ESLI candidate-specific career development plan that is consistent with the goals laid out in the candidate’s personal statement. The plan should provide a description of research and professional career skills to be gained during the supplement experience and career-stage appropriate benchmarks to be sought for both research progress and career development of the ESLI, which may include abstract and publication submissions, oral presentations, and grant submissions. The plan should also address peer-mentoring opportunities and describe how the ESLI candidate will interact with other individuals on the parent grant to enhance the candidate’s research potential and broaden their research network.

In addition, the application should also include the following:

• Primary Mentor Statement: Application must include a statement from the primary mentor of up to one page, demonstrating primary mentor’s expertise, experience conducting research in LMIC, mentoring track record and commitment to the scientific and professional development of the ESLI towards research independence. The letter should also provide an assessment of the candidate’s qualifications and potential for a research career.
• Personal Statement of the ESLI Candidate: Application must include a personal statement of up to one page, describing the ESLI candidate’s career goals, both immediate and long term, and evidence of scientific achievement or interest. The Statement should include a description of current research and future plans to develop an independent scientific research career.
• ESLI Candidate’s LMIC Home Institution Statement: Application must include a letter from the ESLI candidate’s home institution describing the candidate’s citizenship status and position at that institution, including title and duration of the position. The letter must demonstrate commitment to the ESLI candidate's development into a productive, independent investigator by providing assurances that the ESLI candidate will be able to devote the required effort to activities under this award, have access to appropriate office and laboratory space, equipment, and that appropriate time and support will be available for any proposed mentor(s) and/or other staff consistent with the career development plan. In addition, the statement should include a description of the institutional research environment and whether the environment is particularly suited for the development of the ESLI candidate's research career.  The statement must be signed by the appropriate institutional business official at the candidate’s home institution.

NCI requires applicants to submit electronically through Grants.gov. All applications (including those for multi-project activity codes) must be submitted electronically using a single-project application form package with the Competition ID of “FORM-H-ADMINSUPP-RESEARCH”

Review and Selection Process:

NCI will conduct administrative reviews of applications and will support meritorious applications submitted for consideration based upon the availability of funds.

NIH staff will consider the ability of the proposed supplement activities so that the overall contribution of the proposed research, mentoring and career development plan will enhance ESLI’s potential for a productive, independent cancer research career. It is highly recommended that potential applicants contact their NCI Program Director before applying to ensure collaborative projects reflect program priorities.

Specific criteria that will be considered during administrative review include:

ESLI/Candidate

• Does the ESLI have the potential to develop as an independent and productive researcher?
• Are the ESLI's prior academic, clinical (if relevant), and research experience appropriate for this award?
• Is there evidence of the ESLI’s commitment to meeting the program objectives to become an independent investigator?
• Do the documents provided address the above criteria, and do they provide evidence that the ESLI has a high potential for becoming an independent investigator?

Primary Mentor and Co-Mentor(s)

• Are the qualifications of the primary mentor and co-mentors in the area of the proposed research appropriate? Is there evidence of the appropriate expertise, experience, and ability on the part of the mentor(s) in fostering the development of independent investigators?
• Does the primary mentor adequately demonstrate commitment to mentoring the ESLI candidate? Is there adequate description of the quality and extent of the mentor’s proposed role in providing guidance and advice to the candidate? Are specific roles for co-mentors adequately described if applicable?
• Is there evidence of the mentor's current research productivity and peer-reviewed support?
• Is active/pending support for the proposed supplemental research project appropriate and adequate?
• Are there adequate plans for monitoring and evaluating the career development and ESLI candidate’s progress toward research independence?

Research Plan

• Is the proposed supplemental research question, design, and methodology of significant scientific and technical merit considering specific aims, study design, novelty, creativity and approach, significance, and relevance to both the aims of the parent award and the LMIC context?
• Is the research plan relevant to the candidate’s research career objectives? Is the research plan appropriate to the candidate's stage of research development and as a vehicle for developing the research skills described in the career development plan?
• Are the all the allotted resources and facilities adequate to accomplish the specific objectives of the supplement research project?

Mentoring and Career Development Plan/Career Goals and Objectives

• What is the likelihood that the plan will contribute substantially to the scientific and professional development of the candidate and lead to research independence?
• Are the content, scope, phasing, and duration of the mentoring and career development plan appropriate when considered in the context of prior training/research experience and the stated objectives for achieving research independence?
• Are there adequate plans for monitoring and evaluating the candidate’s research and career development progress?

Environment & Institutional Commitment to the Candidate

• Sponsoring Institution: Is there clear commitment of the sponsoring institution to ensure that the PI, primary mentor or co-mentors devote sufficient professional effort to mentor the ESLI’s research and career development activities described in the application? Are the research facilities, resources and training opportunities sufficient to support the ESLI? Is there assurance that the institution intends the candidate to be an integral part of its research program as an independent investigator?
• ESLI’s LMIC Home Institution: Has the institution demonstrated adequate commitment and support towards ESLI’s research and career development? Is the research environment strong enough to support the ESLI and the proposed supplemental research project? Are the resources and facilities available to the ESLI candidate adequately described?

Applicants are encouraged to discuss their application with the scientific/research contact listed in this NOSI prior to submission.

POST AWARD  REPORTING

Supplement progress reports: To facilitate progress report generation and program analysis, PI is strongly encouraged to submit progress reports to the supplemental program director listed on this NOSI.

Inquiries

Please direct all inquiries to:

James R. Alaro, Ph.D.
Program Director
Center for Global Health
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: (240) 660-1036
Email: james.alaro@nih.gov