NIH/NCI: Integrating Health Disparities into Immuno-Oncology (HDIO)

Through this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), the National Cancer Institute (NCI) intends to support planning and feasibility studies to integrate cancer health disparities into immuno-oncology research studies.

Donor Name: National Cancer Institute (NCI)

State: All States

County: All Counties

U.S. Territories: American Samoa, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands

Type of Grant: Grant

Deadline: 05/30/2023

Size of the Grant: $250,000

Grant Duration: 2 years

Details:

This FOA is expected to enable complementary, multi-disciplinary research teams to address interdisciplinary research to integrate cancer health disparities into immuno-oncology research. It is anticipated these feasibility or pilot studies will support the exploration of novel or high-risk research hypotheses.

The scientific research objectives are to integrate health disparities research into immuno-oncology research. This research will require elucidating underlying genetic, inflammatory, metabolic, and immune profiles, and/or distinct tumor immune microenvironments across racial/ethnic minorities or other underserved populations. There is a breadth of scientific opportunities to characterize disparities in immunotherapy response, resistance, and immune-related adverse events. Specific research project examples may include investigating differential immune signatures in the tumor microenvironment among racial/ethnic populations; studying innate immune variants that differ across racial/ethnic populations conferring cancer risk or protection for different cancers; characterizing unique pseudogene expression and tumor immune infiltration among population groups; quantifying distinct antigen levels and cancer risk across multi-ethnic populations; and developing innate immune response-related animal models that capture the diversity and are appropriate to investigate cancer health disparities.

The overall scientific objectives of the P20 projects are to integrate health disparities into immuno-oncology research through multi-disciplinary research projects with complementary strengths in both cancer health disparities and IO research. The P20 projects specifically require

• investigation of under-represented, under-served, and/or racial/ethnic minority populations (e.g., American Indian/Alaska Natives, Asians, African Americans, Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders, Hispanic/Latinos, and/or sex and gender minorities); and
• multi-disciplinary teams with complementary expertise in both cancer health disparities and immuno-oncology research. Given that the causes of cancer health disparities are multifactorial and complex with influence by structural inequalities and societal injustices, it is anticipated the P20 research projects will address the intersectionality of these many, multi-layered biological factors with social determinants of health in understanding and interpreting immuno-oncology research.

Research may include, but is not limited to:

• Understanding inflammatory, metabolic, and immune profiles of immunotherapy treatment response across under-represented populations;
• Investigating genetic, immune signatures, immune infiltrates, and/or distinct tumor immune microenvironments that may contribute to cancer health disparities;
• Characterizing unique gene expression and immune infiltration in cancer subtypes across under-represented populations;
• Profiling differential genetic and immune signatures in distinct tumor microenvironments that may be associated with cancer racial disparities;
• Quantifying distinct genetic, inflammatory, metabolic, and immune profiles with cancer risk across multi-ethnic populations;
• Characterizing disparities in immunotherapy response, resistance, and immune-related adverse events;
• Developing animal models that recapitulate immune responses across under-represented populations;
• Developing patient-derived cancer models that are appropriate for investigating immune responses across under-represented populations; and
• Integrating diverse racial/ethnic representation in multi-omic and/or multi-modal immune monitoring studies.

Required Components

A P20 application must consist of three components: 1) Overall, 2) Administrative Core, and 3) Research Project. The scope of each component is defined below:

• The Overall section should describe the overall research goals of the P20 research project.  Describe the specific aims toward integrating health disparities research into immuno-oncology research.  The Overall section to introduce how the administrative core and research aims will be integrated
• The Administrative Core should provide all organizational, administrative, and scientific management of the P20 project. The P20 project should be comprised of complementary, multi-disciplinary research teams with strengths in both cancer health disparities and immuno-oncology research
  • The Administrative Core is expected to have effective administrative and organizational capabilities to support multi-disciplinary research teams and foster synergy and integration across the P20. The Administrative Core should coordinate and monitor publications and other metrics of collaboration. Given that the causes of cancer health disparities are multifactorial and complex, it is anticipated that the Administrative Core will coordinate data sharing and data interpretation to ensure the research will address the intersection of the many, multi-layered biological factors and social determinants of health, contributing to the understanding cancer health disparities in the proposed immuno-oncology research
  • It is anticipated these P20 planning and feasibility grants will lead to future submissions of well-integrated multi-disciplinary research project applications (e.g., P01s or R01s). Similarly, the Administrative Core should plan future multi-disciplinary, collaborative research projects beyond initial planning and feasibility studies
• The Research Project. All applications must propose one research project that should have the following characteristics:
  • The proposed research project must be focused and align with the cross-cutting theme of addressing cancer health disparities.
  • The proposed research project must be focused on immuno-oncology research, which includes cancer immunology, cancer immunotherapy, cancer immunoprevention, immuno-engineering, immune-related adverse events, cancer immune profiling, etc. This includes basic biological mechanisms underpinning anti-tumor immune responses, immune regulation of the development and spread of tumors, and approaches to improve immune targeting and destruction of cancer cells.
  • The proposed research project must address the topics described above in the “Research Objectives” section.

Funding Information

• NCI intends to commit $1.0M in FY 2024 to fund up to three awards.
• Budget is limited to $250,000 in direct costs per year.

Project Period

The maximum project period is 2 years.

Eligibility Criteria

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)

Local 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)

Federal Governments

• Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government
• U.S. Territory or Possession

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.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.