DOD Lung Cancer, Career Development Award | HT9425 23 LCRP CDA

Opportunity Information: Apply for HT9425 23 LCRP CDA

The FY23 Department of Defense Lung Cancer Research Program (LCRP) Career Development Award is designed to help early-career investigators build independent research careers in lung cancer by pairing them with strong mentorship and providing support for a discovery-focused research project. The program targets research- and physician-scientists who are still near the beginning of their independent faculty trajectory and who want to establish themselves as leaders in lung cancer research. A key restriction is that applications focused only on mesothelioma are not allowed, so proposed projects must address lung cancer more broadly (or other LCRP-relevant lung malignancies) rather than being solely mesothelioma-centered.

This award specifically supports principal investigators (PIs) who are within five years of their first faculty appointment or an equivalent independent position. In other words, it is geared toward investigators who have already transitioned out of trainee roles and into independence, but who still need resources, mentorship, and a track record of results to become fully established. The expectation is that the PI demonstrates a clear commitment to lung cancer research as a long-term career focus, not just a one-off project.

Mentorship is a central feature rather than a formality. Applicants must identify one or more mentors who are experienced lung cancer researchers, with a strong history of funding and publications that shows they are well positioned to guide an early-career investigator. Beyond credentials, the mentor team must also convey a real commitment to the PI's growth, meaning active involvement in training, advising, and helping the PI develop the scientific and professional skills needed to become an independent, competitive researcher in this field.

A structured Career Development Plan is required and should be built collaboratively with the mentor(s). This plan needs to spell out how the PI will gain the skills, technical expertise, and research experience necessary to operate at the forefront of lung cancer research. Because the award is explicitly career-development oriented, the PI must commit at least 25 percent effort to the supported lung cancer research during the project period. That time commitment signals that the award is meant to meaningfully shape the PI's trajectory, not sit on the margins of other responsibilities.

On the science side, the award prioritizes impactful, discovery-driven projects that could move the field forward in meaningful ways. Preliminary data are not required, which lowers a common barrier for early-career investigators. At the same time, the application still needs to be scientifically convincing: the proposed work must be grounded in logical reasoning, a clear hypothesis or conceptual framework, and a sound rationale that explains why the approach is likely to produce important insights or advances.

A consistent expectation across the DOD medical research portfolio is relevance to the Military Health System (MHS). For this opportunity, applicants must clearly explain how the proposed lung cancer research matters to Service Members, Veterans, and their families. That relevance could be tied to risk factors, exposures, screening and early detection needs, treatment challenges, survivorship issues, or other concerns that disproportionately affect or are especially important to military-connected populations. The proposal should not treat this as a generic statement; it should make a specific, credible case for how the work could benefit these communities.

Administratively, this funding opportunity is offered by the Department of Defense (Department of the Army, USAMRAA) under CFDA 12.420 and can be made as a grant or cooperative agreement. Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning a wide range of applicant organizations may apply as long as they meet any requirements described in the full announcement. The opportunity number is HT9425-23-LCRP-CDA, with an anticipated three awards. The listed award ceiling is shown as 0 in the provided source data, which typically indicates that applicants need to consult the full funding announcement for budget limits or that the ceiling is not captured in that particular summary field. An additional program requirement is that the PI must attend a one-day DOD in-progress review meeting before the end of the second year of the award, which reflects the program's emphasis on oversight, progress tracking, and engagement with the broader DOD research community.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DOD Lung Cancer, Career Development Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 16, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 23, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 3 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for HT9425 23 LCRP CDA

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