Brain Cancer Research Investigator Grant

Program Status: Currently on one-year pause (effective 2026). Program will resume in March 2027.

Geographic Scope: North America

Focus Areas:

• Brain cancer research (adult and pediatric)
• Clinical research projects
• Translational research projects with significant clinical promise

Award Details:

• Term: One year
• Payment Structure: Two installments
  • First installment: $25,000 on or about June 30
  • Second installment: $25,000 after satisfactory progress report submission and approval
• Progress Report Due: 6 months from initial funding date (approximately 3 pages with budget review)
• Final Report Due: Exactly one year from funding date (approximately 3 pages with budget summary)

Eligibility Requirements:

• Applicant must be full-time faculty (or have a contract for such position) at a research institution in North America
• Primary focus must be brain cancer research
• Must be undertaking one of the following:
  • Clinical or translational research with intention of applying for R01 NIH funding or equivalent within 5 years, OR
  • Innovative research to bridge from bench to animal research or to acquire preclinical data from animal models
• Must demonstrate outstanding research proposal with relevance, sound methodological design, and feasibility
• Must have demonstrated institutional support
• Biostatistician involvement is required for all clinical trial proposals (not required for pre-clinical or translational science proposals)

Requirements:

• All proposed research must be directly related to brain cancer field
• Research must have appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for clinical projects before funding is granted
• Award is exclusively for conducting the proposed research
• Winner's name, institution, title, and brief project description will be posted on B*CURED website
• Any publication associated with research must recognize B*CURED as a sponsor

Application Procedure

1. Submission Method: Email all proposals in PDF form to research@bcured.org
2. Deadline: Applications must be received on or before April 1 (next deadline: April 1, 2027, pending program resumption)
3. Review Process: Medical Advisory Board reviews and evaluates applications; Grants Committee conducts subsequent review; B*CURED Board of Directors makes final approval
4. Notification: All applicants notified via email of decision
5. Confidentiality: All applications confidential and available only to Board of Directors, Grants Committee, and Medical Advisory Board

Required Application Materials

• Cover Letter – Explain career goals and how B*CURED grant assists overall research program; include specific paragraph on institutional environment suitability
• Project Title
• Non-Technical Project Description – 250 words or less
• Technical Project Description – 250 words or less
• NIH Bio-sketch of applicant
• Letters of Support from project collaborators (include names, emails, phone contacts)
• Letter of Support from Department Head or Chief stating applicant has resources and time to perform research (include name, email, phone contact)
• Detailed Budget – NIH format; no indirect costs permitted; keep salary costs to 60% of budget
• List of Other Financial Support – All active and pending financial support pertaining to clinical work or research during funding term
• Financial Conflicts of Interest – List all equity, fiduciary responsibility, advisory payments, or sponsored research agreements with for-profit entities over last 2 years
• Scientific Proposal – 5 pages total, organized as follows:
  • Project Abstract (½ page) – Brief clinical problem statement including background and significance; how approach is novel and feasible; statement of how findings will advance brain tumor therapeutic research
  • Specific Aims (½ page) – Specific scientific hypothesis with at least two specific aims
  • Preliminary Data (1 page) – Use one or two key figures to illustrate major points (preferably from peer-reviewed published literature)
  • Research Plan (2 pages) – For clinical proposals: define study population, state number of patients, number of sites; specific inclusion/exclusion criteria; clinical endpoints and measurement timing. For translational science proposals: explicitly state how study connects basic science finding to clinical or pre-clinical studies
  • Statistics (½ page) – Expected treatments (where applicable); sample size estimates (80% and 90% power)
  • Study Limitations (½ page) – Discuss limitations and potential pitfalls
• Bibliography
• Biohazards Statement
• Human Investigation Statement
• Laboratory Animal Statement (if applicable)

Special Requirements for Clinical Trial Proposals

• Applicants should consult: Friedman LM, Furberg CD, DeMets DL: Fundamentals of Clinical Trials – 3rd ed. New York, Springer-Verlag New York, Inc., 1998

Submission Notes

• Scan all letters of recommendation into electronic version of application
• All signatures must be electronic in PDF form
• Contact research@bcured.org with any questions