Department of Health and Human Services
Part 1. Overview Information
Participating Organization(s)

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Components of Participating Organizations

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Funding Opportunity Title

Assay Validation For High Quality Markers For NCI-Supported Clinical Trials (Admin Supp)

Activity Code

Administrative Supplement

Additional funds may be awarded as supplements to parent awards using the following Activity Code(s):

Administrative supplement requests must be submitted on paper for the following activity codes:

P30 Center Core Grants

U10 Cooperative Clinical Research Cooperative Agreements
U19 Research Program Cooperative Agreements
U54 Specialized Center- Cooperative Agreements
U56 Exploratory Grants Cooperative Agreements

Administrative supplement requests may be submitted electronically for the following activity codes:

R01 Research Project Grant

R33 Exploratory/Developmental Grants Phase II

U01 Research Project Cooperative Agreements

U24 Resource-Related Research Projects Cooperative Agreementst

Announcement Type

New

Related Notices

Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Number

PA-15-264

Companion Funding Opportunity

None

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s)

93.394

Funding Opportunity Purpose

The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to improve the development and validation of molecular diagnostics for the treatment, control, or prevention of cancer. This FOA includes, but is not limited to, the validation of prognostic, predictive or response markers for treatment and markers for cancer control or prevention trials. Applicants should have an assay that works in human samples and whose importance is well justified for development into a clinical assay. In addition, analytical validation of assays for these markers should be achieved when the application is submitted so that clinical validation may be achieved with little further analytical validation needed. This supplement may be used to support acquisition of specimens from retrospective or prospective studies from NCI-supported or other clinical trials. Clinical laboratory staff, technical and other needs must be an integral part of the application. Assays proposed for this FOA may be used to validate existing assays for use in other cancer clinical trials, observational studies or populations. Projects proposed for this FOA will require multi-disciplinary interaction and collaboration among scientific investigators, clinicians, statisticians and clinical laboratory scientists and staff. This FOA is not intended to support trials that assess the clinical utility of a marker/assay but is intended to develop assays to the point where their clinical utility could be assessed in other trials.

Key Dates
Posted Date

May 18, 2015

Open Date (Earliest Submission Date)

September 7, 2015

Letter of Intent Due Date(s)

Not Applicable

Application Due Date(s)

October 7, 2015; February 9, 2016; July 8, 2016; October 7, 2016; February 9, 2017; July 7, 2017; October 6, 2017; March 26, 2018; July 8, 2018, by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization.

Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.

AIDS Application Due Date(s)

Not Applicable

Scientific Merit Review

Not Applicable

Advisory Council Review

Not Applicable

Earliest Start Date

February 2016; June 2016; December 2016; February 2017; June 2017; December 2017; February 2018; June 2018; December 2018;

Expiration Date

New Date December 16, 2015 per issuance of NOT-CA-16-014. (Original Expiration Date: July 9, 2018)

Due Dates for E.O. 12372

Not Applicable

Required Application Instructions

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Application Guide (SF424 (R&R) Application Guide or PHS 398 Application Guide, as appropriate) except where instructed to do otherwise (in this FOA or in a Notice from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts). Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the FOA) is required and strictly enforced. Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV. When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions. Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.


Table of Contents

Part 1. Overview Information
Part 2. Full Text of the Announcement
Section I. Funding Opportunity Description
Section II. Award Information
Section III. Eligibility Information
Section IV. Application and Submission Information
Section V. Application Review Information
Section VI. Award Administration Information
Section VII. Agency Contacts
Section VIII. Other Information


Part 2. Full Text of Announcement
Section I. Funding Opportunity Description

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) seeks to improve the development of molecular diagnostics for use in NCI-supported clinical trials in cancer. This FOA includes, but is not limited to, the validation of prognostic, predictive or response markers for treatment and markers for cancer control or prevention trials. Applicants should have an assay that has essentially completed analytical validation in human samples and whose importance is well justified for development into a clinical assay. Support through this administrative supplement will enhance the clinical validation of established assays with little further analytical validation required. Support may be sought to obtain retrospective or prospective specimens from NCI-supported or other clinical trials.

Assays proposed for this FOA may be used to validate existing assays for use in other trials, observational studies or populations involving cancer. Projects that improve standardization of assay performance among laboratories are also encouraged. Projects proposed for this FOA will necessitate multi-disciplinary interaction and collaboration among scientific investigators, clinicians, statisticians and clinical laboratory scientists and staff.

Background

NCI-supported clinical trials increasingly depend upon molecular diagnostics to be measured as targets for therapy (companion diagnostics) or other essential or integral markers for treatment, prevention or cancer control trials. Many of these diagnostics are proposed from investigators in academic or small biotechnical companies that have developed interesting markers based on discovery research. These markers may be pharmacodynamic, mechanism of action as well as predictive or response markers. They may also be related to risk of cancer in prevention or cancer control trials. NCI’s experience is that these investigators generally do not understand the rigor and regulations that clinical laboratory assays must meet. This causes considerable delay and added expense to the performance of clinical trials. This FOA uses a cooperative agreement that enables NCI staff to proactively assist investigators to meet the requirements for analytical and clinical validation of assays and prepare for their use in clinical trials.

Research Objectives

Applications to this FOA must propose to clinically validate an existing assay using human specimens in a clinical laboratory into a molecular diagnostic assay that can be used in a clinical trial for the treatment, prevention or control of cancer. The primary elements for achieving the research objectives are:

  • Existing assay: an assay that has been reduced to practice in human tissues. An assay may be from discovery research or based on the scientific investigator’s interests but should have essentially completed analytical validation (see below).
  • Clinical laboratory: a laboratory that provides assay results that either assist in medical decision-making or tests postulates or mechanisms of action of clinical, prevention or cancer control treatments or interventions. Assays that support medical-decision-making need to be performed in Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act of 1988 (CLIA)-certified laboratories. Assays to test postulates or mechanisms should conform to Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) or ISO 17025 standards in order to assure that the data generated by the assay are of sufficient quality as to be useful in clinical trials and justify sample collection.
  • Molecular diagnostic: a marker measured in a validated assay that is associated with a clinical endpoint in a pre-defined clinical context or situation that yields usable information about prognosis or response to a clinical intervention for treatment, prevention or control of cancer.
Project Characteristics
  • The project must focus on assays whose marker or classifier is likely to be used in treatment, prevention, or cancer control trials. There does not need to be a commitment to a particular trial.
  • The project should use technologies already in use or soon to be approved for use in clinical laboratories since this is not a technology development FOA.
  • Applications to improve standardization or harmonization of assays among laboratories for use in clinical trials are appropriate for this FOA.

Assay Pre-requisites and Preliminary Data: The applicant must have an assay using human specimens that may be derived from discovery research or the result of previous hypotheses or biological or clinical rationale. The assay may be a multiplex assay or a classifier but must be able after conversion to a clinical assay to be performed in a clinical trial. The assay must be near the end of analytical validation with fine-tuning of cut-offs or thresholds for a positive assay result left for clinical validation. It is expected that the following metrics will have been achieved during analytical validation of the assay:

  • Accuracy
  • Precision
  • Analytical sensitivity
  • Analytical specificity including interfering substances
  • Reportable range of test results for the test system
  • Reference intervals (normal values) with controls and calibrators
  • Harmonization of analytical performance if the assay is to be performed in multiple laboratories
  • Establishment of appropriate quality control and improvement procedures
  • Any other performance characteristic required for test performance with determination of calibration and control procedures.

Preliminary data should define the current status of the assay as well as justify support for optimization and usability in a clinical trial.

Objectives for the Clinical Validation Supplement: The objectives for completion of the clinical validation of assays are:

  • Definition of the sensitivity and specificity of the assay result with the defined clinical endpoint
  • Estimation of the prevalence of the marker within subjects or patients for the intended clinical context
  • Establishment of an appropriate cut-off or threshold for the assay using appropriate statistical analysis
  • Demonstration of the association of the result of the assay with a clinical endpoint (e.g., survival, response, disease presence or absence) in samples from patients that have been treated or exposed to a uniform intervention or observation for treatment, prevention or cancer control trials

Assays that have already met the above criteria for analytical validation may apply directly to the companion PAR-15-095 for clinical validation of the assay.

Investigators' Team

The projects proposed for this FOA will necessitate multi-disciplinary interaction and collaboration among scientific investigators, clinicians, statisticians and clinical laboratory scientists and staff. Therefore, in addition to the PD/PI, the Investigators' Team should include the following participants:

  • Clinical Investigator: Investigator(s) who define the intended clinical context of use for the marker and its assay and will oversee their incorporation into a potential trial likely to be oncologist(s) who treat patients but may be a translational scientist.
  • Clinical Laboratory Staff: Staff who will perform the translation of the assay into a clinical assay. The staff may work in a CLIA-certified clinical laboratory but do not need to do so if the assay is not intended to used for medical decision-making. In that case the assay is likely to be for hypothesis or mechanism of action testing and the clinical laboratory staff and their laboratory need to be aware of Good Laboratory Practices and/or ISO 17025 standards and perform to that level of quality but not necessarily be certified. In any case, the clinical laboratory staff need to be aware of the Westgard rules.
  • Statistician: A statistician familiar with the needs of marker studies should be part of the team, when power calculations need to be provided for assessing the use of the assay and its marker within the intended clinical context.
  • Commercial Developer (optional): While not necessary for all projects, successful assays will need to be distributed and supported. Therefore, collaboration with a commercial partner who will support the distribution and commercialization of the assay is encouraged, but not required.

Research projects that are not appropriate for this FOA

Because this FOA is not meant to support trials that assess the clinical utility of a marker/assay but is intended to get assays to the point where their clinical utility could be assessed in other trials, projects that are not appropriate for this FOA include technology development such as those covered by the Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies Program (IMAT) or the Early Detection Research Network (EDRN) at the NCI.

Section II. Award Information
Funding Instrument

The funding instrument will be the same as the parent award.

Grant: A support mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity.

Cooperative Agreement: A support mechanism used when there will be substantial Federal scientific or programmatic involvement. Substantial involvement means that, after award, NIH scientific or program staff will assist, guide, coordinate, or participate in project activities.

Application Types Allowed

Non-competing Administrative Supplements

Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards

The number of awards is contingent upon NIH appropriations and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications.

Award Budget

Application budgets are limited to $150,000 in direct costs in any single year. Direct Costs may not exceed Parent Award Direct Costs.

The funding mechanism being used to support this program, administrative supplements, can be used to cover cost increases that are associated with achieving certain new research objectives, as long as the research objectives are within the original scope of the peer reviewed and approved project, or the cost increases are for unanticipated expenses within the original scope of the project. Any cost increases need to result from making modifications to the project that would increase or preserve the overall impact of the project consistent with its originally approved objectives and purposes.

Award Project Period

The project and budget periods must be within the currently approved project period for the existing parent award. Proposed projects should not exceed three years.

NIH grants policies as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made in response to this FOA.

Section III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants
Eligible Organizations

All organizations administering an eligible parent award may apply for a supplement under this announcement.

Higher Education Institutions

  • Public/State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
  • Private Institutions of Higher Education

The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for NIH support as Public or Private Institutions of Higher Education:

  • Hispanic-serving Institutions
  • Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
  • Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs)
  • Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions
  • Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs)

Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education

  • Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Higher Education)
  • Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Higher Education)

For-Profit Organizations

  • Small Businesses
  • For-Profit Organizations (Other than Small Businesses)

Governments

  • State Governments
  • County Governments
  • City or Township Governments
  • Special District Governments
  • Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized)
  • Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized)
  • Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government
  • U.S. Territory or Possession

Other

  • Independent School Districts
  • Public Housing Authorities/Indian Housing Authorities
  • Native American Tribal Organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
  • Faith-based or Community-based Organizations
  • Regional Organizations

This announcement is for supplements to existing projects. To be eligible, the parent award must be active and the research proposed in the supplement must be accomplished within the competitive segment. The proposed supplement must be to provide for an increase in costs due to unforeseen circumstances. All additional costs must be within the scope of the peer reviewed and approved project.

IMPORTANT: The research proposed by the NIH grantee in the supplement application must be within the original scope of the NIH-supported grant project.

Foreign Institutions

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are not eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are not eligible to apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

Required Registrations

Applicant Organizations

Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted. Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as possible. The NIH Policy on Late Submission of Grant Applications states that failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a late submission.

  • Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) - All registrations require that applicants be issued a DUNS number. After obtaining a DUNS number, applicants can begin both SAM and eRA Commons registrations. The same DUNS number must be used for all registrations, as well as on the grant application.
  • System for Award Management (SAM) (formerly CCR) Applicants must complete and maintain an active registration, which requires renewal at least annually. The renewal process may require as much time as the initial registration. SAM registration includes the assignment of a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code for domestic organizations which have not already been assigned a CAGE Code.
  • NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code Foreign organizations must obtain an NCAGE code (in lieu of a CAGE code) in order to register in SAM.
  • eRA Commons - Applicants must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the eRA Commons registration. Organizations can register with the eRA Commons as they are working through their SAM or Grants.gov registration. eRA Commons requires organizations to identify at least one Signing Official (SO) and at least one Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) account in order to submit an application.
  • Grants.gov Applicants must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the Grants.gov registration.

Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s))

All PD(s)/PI(s) must have an eRA Commons account. PD(s)/PI(s) should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate their existing account with the applicant organization in eRA Commons.If the PD/PI is also the organizational Signing Official, they must have two distinct eRA Commons accounts, one for each role. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks.

Eligible Individuals (Program Director/Principal Investigator)

Individual(s) must hold an active grant or cooperative agreement, and the research proposed in the supplement must be accomplished within the competitive segment of the active award. Individuals are encouraged to work with their organizations to develop applications for support.

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 awardee institution of the parent award. Do not use this administrative supplement application to add, delete, or change the PDs/PIs listed on the parent award. Visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide for more information.

2. Cost Sharing

This FOA does not require cost sharing as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

3. Additional Information on Eligibility
Number of Applications

Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each is sufficiently distinct from any other administrative supplement currently under consideration by the awarding NIH Institute or Center.

Section IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Requesting an Application Package

Applicants must prepare applications using current forms in accordance with the Application Guide.

For electronic submissions, applicants must download the SF424 (R&R) application package associated with this funding opportunity using the Apply for Grant Electronically button in this announcement, or use the eRA Commons streamlined submission process.

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

All forms must be completed for the supplemental activities only and must not reflect funding or activities for the previously awarded parent award.

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Application Guide (SF424 (R&R) Application Guide or PHS 398 Application Guide, as appropriate) including Supplemental Grant Application Instructions except where instructed in this funding opportunity announcement to do otherwise. Conformance to the requirements in the Application Guide is required and strictly enforced. Applications that are out of compliance with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.

For information on Application Submission and Receipt, visit Frequently Asked Questions Application Guide, Electronic Submission of Grant Applications.

Page Limitations

All page limitations described in the Application Guide and the Table of Page Limits must be followed, :

Application Submission

Electronic submission of request for administrative supplements is only available for single-project activity codes for which competing applications are submitted electronically. Visit the list of single-project Activity Codes Processed Electronically by eRA to determine if the single-project activity code of the parent award has transitioned to electronic submission. Submission of requests for administrative supplements for all other activity codes must use paper.

If the administrative supplement may be submitted electronically, then you may either (A) submit using the SF424 (R&R) Application Forms and Grants.gov/Apply, (B) submit using the streamlined submission process of eRA Commons, or (C) submit using the paper-based PHS 398 Application forms and the PHS 398 Application Guide.

Instructions for Submissions using Grants.gov/Apply for electronic-based submissions

For single project grants with activity codes that have transitioned to electronic submission using the SF424 (R&R) application forms, administrative supplement requests may be submitted electronically as a Revision application type on the R&R Cover Form. Prepare applications using the SF424 (R&R) application forms associated with this announcement. Please note that some forms marked optional in the application package are required for submission of applications for this announcement. Follow all instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide to ensure you complete all appropriate required and optional forms.

Special Instructions for Streamlined Submissions using the eRA Commons for electronic-based submissions

NIH now offers a streamlined system through the eRA Commons for submitting administrative supplements. Login to the eRA Commons, identify the parent award, and prepare an administrative supplement request. A User’s Guide for submitting through this system is available.

Include the Research Strategy and any other required documentation (described below) as a PDF file using the Add Other Attachments function. Budget information should be entered for the grantee institution in the fields provided. There is no template or form available for subaward information; instead, all subaward information should be included as a separate attachment showing the funds requested (by budget period) using the same categories provided for the grantee institution. Also include a budget justification for the subawardee institution in the same file.

Instructions for Submissions using the PHS 398 Application Forms (for paper-based submissions)

Applications must be prepared using the PHS 398 research grant application forms and instructions for preparing a research grant application. The grantee institution, on behalf of the PD/PI of the parent award, must submit the request for supplemental funds directly to the awarding component that supports the parent award. Submit a signed, typewritten original of the application, including the checklist, to:

J. M. Jessup, MD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276-5952
Email: jessupj@mail.nih.gov

On the face page of the application form, note that your application is in response to a specific program announcement, and enter the title and number of this announcement.

PHS 398 Research Plan (Research Plan)

All instructions in the Application Guide must be followed for all Research Plan sections applicable to the proposed supplement activities. At a minimum, the Research Strategy section should be completed and must include a summary or abstract of the funded parent award or project. Other sections should also be included if they are being changed by the proposed supplement activities.

Introduction: Describe how the proposed supplemental activities relate to the parent award.

Specific Aims: Specify the general research objectives listed in the Funding Opportunity Description section of this FOA.

Research Strategy: Organize the Research Strategy in the subsections identified below.

1) Background and Significance

  • Define the cancer problem to be addressed, including the marker and its assay and how they fit the intended clinical context in which they will be used.
  • Provide the biologic or discovery research rationale for the marker and its importance
  • Outline the proposed assay and its marker and its potential for affecting the intended clinical context in treatment, prevention or cancer control trials.

2) Preliminary Data

  • Describe the current state of analytical validation of the assay in human specimens within the intended clinical context, including the current reagents and technologies and types of specimens that the assay will use (e.g., fresh frozen or formalin-fixed tissue, serum or plasma)
  • Describe the status of analytical validation for each of the pre-requisites described in Section I above.

3) Approach

  • Plans for additional optimization of analytical validation primarily limited to establishing thresholds or cut-offs for assay
  • Plans to accrue specimens to perform clinical validation of assay including identification of the clinical resource or trial that will provide specimens, documentation of appropriate availability and pre-approvals to get specimens (i.e. indication that the repository holder identifies availability of specimens and that there is an appropriate process to get the specimens with reasonable certainty)
  • Provision of a statistical power analysis that defines the number of specimens needed
  • Plan for clinical validation of the assay within the intended clinical context of use
  • Plans to address regulatory requirements needed to get assay into clinical trial
  • Identification of Potential Pitfalls and Alternative Approaches to overcome obstacles to clinical validation of the assay
  • Plans to address the regulatory issues regarding use of the marker in clinical trials and its assay within its intended clinical context. This includes the possibility of controlling intellectual property, evaluation of the significant risk of the assay and marker within the clinical context of a clinical trial and plans for collaboration with commercial entities to support the assay if it is successful.

Milestones and Timeline

The applicant and the clinical laboratory staff must propose milestones for clinical validation.
A timeline (Gantt chart) including milestones is required.

Letters of Support. Letters of commitment from all participants of the Investigators' Team should be included.

Project/Performance Site Locations (Project/Performance Sites)

All instructions in the Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

  • Include the primary site where the proposed supplement activities will be performed.
  • If a portion of the proposed supplement activities will be performed at any other site(s), identify the locations in the fields provided.
Senior/Key Personnel Form

All instructions in the Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

  • List the PD/PI as the first person (regardless of their role on the supplement activities).
  • List any other Senior/Key Personnel who are being added through this supplement, or for whom additional funds are being requested through this supplement; include a biographical sketch for each.
R&R Detailed Budget Form (for use with electronic submissions)

All budgets should be submitted using the R&R Detailed Budget form, regardless of the form used for the parent award, and should only include funds requested for the additional supplement activities.

Budget for the Entire Proposed Period of Support (for use with paper-based submissions)

A proposed budget should be submitted using the PHS 398 budget forms, in accordance with the PHS 398 Application Guide, and should only include funds requested for the additional supplement activities.

Other Project Information (for use with electronic submissions); Appendix (use with paper-based submissions)

All instructions in the Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:
IACUC Documentation and IRB Documentation: (Uploaded via the Other Attachments Section for electronic submissions)

  • If applicable, include documentation that the proposed research experience was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) or human subjects Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the grantee institution. Adherence to the NIH policy for including women and minorities in clinical studies must also be ensured, if additional human subjects involvement is planned for the supplement component.

The filename provided for each Other Attachment will be the name used for the bookmark in the electronic application in eRA Commons.

Planned Enrollment Report

Not Applicable

PHS 398 Cumulative Inclusion Enrollment Report

Not Applicable

3. Submission Dates and Times

Part I. Overview Information contains information about Key Dates. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission.

Organizations must submit applications as described above. Applicants must then complete the submission process by tracking the status of the application in the eRA Commons, NIH’s electronic system for grants administration.

Applicants are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission.

For electronic application submission, information on the submission process and a definition of on-time submission are provided in the SF424(R&R) Application Guide.

For paper-based application submission, information on the process of receipt and determining if your application is considered on-time is described in detail in the PHS 398 Application Guide.

4. Intergovernmental Review (E.O. 12372)

This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review.

5. Funding Restrictions

All NIH awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

Pre-award costs are allowable only as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

6. Other Submission Requirements and Information

Applications must be submitted using the instructions specified above.

Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Section III. Eligibility Information contains information about registration.

For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission process, visit Applying Electronically. If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must follow the Guidelines for Applicants Experiencing System Issues.

Important reminders:
For applications submitted electronically on the SF424 (R&R) Application forms, all PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile form of the SF 424(R&R) Application Package. Failure to register in the Commons and to include a valid PD/PI Commons ID in the credential field will prevent the successful submission of an electronic application to NIH.

The applicant organization must ensure that the DUNS number it provides on the application is the same number used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the (SAM). Additional information may be found in the Application Guide.

See more tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness and compliance with application instructions by the Center for Scientific Review, NIH. Applications that are incomplete or non-compliant will not be reviewed

Post Submission Materials

Not Applicable

Section V. Application Review Information
1. Criteria

Administrative Supplements do not receive peer review. Instead, the administrative criteria described below will be considered in the administrative evaluation process.

The staff of the NIH awarding component will evaluate requests for a supplement to determine its overall merit. The following general criteria will be used:

Budget and Period of Support

NIH staff will consider whether the budget and the requested period of support are fully justified and reasonable in relation to the proposed research.

Overall Impact

NIH staff will consider the ability of the proposed supplement activities to increase or preserve the parent award’s overall impact within the original scope of award:

Will the administrative supplement increase or preserve the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved?

  • Does the applicant justify the use of their proposed assay and its marker as well as the ability of the applicant’s team to perform analytical and clinical validation of assays in their clinical laboratory?
  • What is the status of the existing assay and the plan for its optimization in the clinical laboratory?
  • What is the intended clinical context of use for the proposed molecular diagnostic?
  • What is the type of specimen to be used for the assay and how will the assay result be used?
  • Is there a clear involvement of clinical laboratory staff?.

In addition, each of the following criteria will be evaluated as applicable for the proposed supplement.

Protections for Human Subjects:

For research that involves human subjects but does not involve one of the six categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, NIH staff will evaluate the justification for involvement of human subjects and the proposed protections from research risk relating to their participation according to the following five review criteria: 1) risk to subjects, 2) adequacy of protection against risks, 3) potential benefits to the subjects and others, 4) importance of the knowledge to be gained, and 5) data and safety monitoring for clinical trials.

For research that involves human subjects and meets the criteria for one or more of the six categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, NIH staff will evaluate: 1) the justification for the exemption, 2) human subjects involvement and characteristics, and 3) sources of materials. For additional information on review of the Human Subjects section, please refer to the Guidelines for the Review of Human Subjects.

Inclusion of Women, Minorities, and Children

When the proposed project involves human subjects and/or NIH-defined clinical research, the committee will evaluate the proposed plans for the inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals on the basis of sex/gender, race, and ethnicity, as well as the inclusion (or exclusion) of children to determine if it is justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed. For additional information on review of the Inclusion section, please refer to the Guidelines for the Review of Inclusion in Clinical Research.

Vertebrate Animals

NIH staff will evaluate the involvement of live vertebrate animals as part of the scientific assessment according to the following five points: 1) proposed use of the animals, and species, strains, ages, sex, and numbers to be used; 2) justifications for the use of animals and for the appropriateness of the species and numbers proposed; 3) adequacy of veterinary care; 4) procedures for limiting discomfort, distress, pain and injury to that which is unavoidable in the conduct of scientifically sound research including the use of analgesic, anesthetic, and tranquilizing drugs and/or comfortable restraining devices; and 5) methods of euthanasia and reason for selection if not consistent with the AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia. For additional information on review of the Vertebrate Animals section, please refer to the Worksheet for Review of the Vertebrate Animal Section.

Biohazards

NIH staff will assess whether materials or procedures proposed are potentially hazardous to research personnel and/or the environment, and if needed, determine whether adequate protection is proposed.

2. Review and Selection Process

Administrative supplement requests will undergo an administrative evaluation by NIH staff, but not a full peer review. Applications submitted for this funding opportunity will be assigned to the awarding component for the parent award and will be administratively evaluated using the criteria shown above.

3. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates

Not Applicable

Section VI. Award Administration Information
1. Award Notices

A formal notification in the form of a Notice of Award (NoA) will be provided to the applicant organization for successful applications. This may be as an NoA for the supplemental activities only; alternatively, it may be as either a revision to the current year NoA or included as part of a future year NoA. The NoA signed by the grants management officer is the authorizing document and will be sent via email to the grantee’s business official.

Awardees must comply with any funding restrictions described in Section IV.5. Funding Restrictions. Selection of an application for award is not an authorization to begin performance. Any costs incurred before receipt of the NoA are at the recipient's risk. These costs may be reimbursed only to the extent considered allowable pre-award costs.

Any application awarded in response to this FOA will be subject to terms and conditions found on the Award Conditions and Information for NIH Grants website. This includes any recent legislation and policy applicable to awards that is highlighted on this website. When calculating the award for additional funds, NIH will 1) prorate funding if the requested budget period is adjusted at the time of award, and 2) use the institution’s current F&A rate; i.e., the rate in effect when the new funding is provided.

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

All NIH grant and cooperative agreement awards include the NIH Grants Policy Statement as part of the NoA. For these terms of award, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart A: General and Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart B: Terms and Conditions for Specific Types of Grants, Grantees, and Activities. More information is provided at Award Conditions and Information for NIH Grants.

Cooperative Agreement Terms and Conditions of Award

Any supplements to Cooperative Agreements will be subject to the same Cooperative Agreement terms and conditions as the parent award.

3. Reporting

Reporting requirements will be specified in the terms and conditions of award as applicable to the supplemental activities. In most non-competing continuation applications, the progress report and budget for the supplement must be included with, but clearly delineated from, the progress report and budget for the parent award. The progress report must include information about the activities supported by the supplement even if support for future years is not requested. Continuation of support for the supplement activities in the remaining years of the competitive segment of the grant will depend upon satisfactory review by the NIH awarding component of progress for both the parent award and the supplement project, the research proposed for the next budget period, and the appropriateness of the proposed budget for the proposed effort. This information is submitted with the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) and financial statements as required in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act), includes a requirement for awardees of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards issued in FY2011 or later. All awardees of applicable NIH grants and cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal Subaward Reporting System (FSRS) available at www.fsrs.gov on all subawards over $25,000. See the NIH Grants Policy Statement for additional information on this reporting requirement.

Section VII. Agency Contacts

We encourage inquiries concerning this funding opportunity and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.

Application Submission Contacts

eRA Service Desk (Questions regarding ASSIST, eRA Commons registration, submitting and tracking an application, documenting system problems that threaten submission by the due date, post submission issues)
Telephone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free)
Finding Help Online: http://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html
Email: commons@od.nih.gov

Grants.gov Customer Support (Questions regarding Grants.gov registration and submission, downloading forms and application packages)
Contact Center Telephone: 800-518-4726
Web ticketing system: https://grants-portal.psc.gov/ContactUs.aspx
Email: support@grants.gov

GrantsInfo (Questions regarding application instructions and process, finding NIH grant resources)
Email: GrantsInfo@nih.gov (preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-710-0267

Scientific/Research Contact(s)

Magdalena Thurin, PhD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276-5973
Email: thurinm@mail.nih.gov

(For assays involving immunological diagnostics and non-companion diagnostics for treatment trials)

J. M. Jessup, MD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276-5952
Email: jessupj@mail.nih.gov

(For response, safety, resistance and risk stratification markers for treatment markers)

Minkyung (Min) Song, PhD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276- 6139
Email: songm@mail.nih.gov

(For companion diagnostics and pharmacodynamic markers for treatment trials)

Asad Umar, DVM, PhD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276- 7070
Email: umara@mail.nih.gov

(For assays involving assays for cancer prevention)

Mukesh Verma, PhD
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276- 6889
Email: vermam@mail.nih.gov

(For assays involving cancer epidemiology and population science)

Peer Review Contact(s)

Not Applicable

Financial/Grants Management Contact(s)

Shane Woodward
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276-6303
Email: Woodwars@mail.nih.gov

Section VIII. Other Information

Recently issued trans-NIH policy notices may affect your application submission. A full list of policy notices published by NIH is provided in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts. All awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

Authority and Regulations

Awards are made under the authorization of Sections 301 and 405 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241 and 284) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR Part 52 and 45 CFR Part 75.

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