Improving Outcomes in Cancer Treatment-Related Cardiotoxicity (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PA 18 003

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 18 003

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity "Improving Outcomes in Cancer Treatment-Related Cardiotoxicity (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number: PA-18-003) supports research projects aimed at reducing heart and blood vessel damage caused by cancer therapies while still preserving, and ideally improving, cancer treatment results. At its core, the announcement is trying to accelerate practical, clinically meaningful strategies that help clinicians identify which patients are most likely to experience cardiotoxicity, understand why they are at risk, and apply screening and management approaches that prevent or lessen cardiovascular problems without compromising effective cancer care.

A central theme of the FOA is collaboration and integration across oncology and cardiology (often described as cardio-oncology). NIH is looking for applications that bring together teams and methods capable of evaluating cardiovascular risk before a patient starts cancer therapy, then using that information to tailor care. That can include developing or testing ways to stratify baseline risk, selecting evidence-based cancer regimens with cardiac considerations in mind, and pairing treatment plans with appropriate screening, diagnostic tools, and management strategies. The emphasis is not just on detecting damage after it happens, but on anticipating it and mitigating it early, ideally in a way that can be implemented in real-world clinical settings.

The scope of cardiotoxicity in this opportunity is broad and intentionally spans multiple categories of modern cancer therapy. Proposed research may address adverse cardiovascular effects linked to traditional cytotoxic chemotherapies, newer targeted agents, immunomodulatory therapies (including immune-based treatments), and radiation. Importantly, NIH notes that cardiotoxicity can emerge during active treatment and also later, during long-term survivorship, so projects can focus on acute, subacute, or delayed effects. The FOA also anchors outcomes to cardiac-specific Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE), signaling that applicants should use well-defined, standardized clinical criteria for identifying and characterizing cardiovascular adverse events.

Mechanistically and methodologically, the FOA invites work that improves how risk is assessed, how monitoring is performed, and how intervention decisions are made. This can include approaches to screening and diagnosis (for example, improved imaging, biomarkers, or structured surveillance protocols), as well as management strategies that prevent or reduce dysfunction (such as cardioprotective regimens, medication strategies, care pathways, or coordinated management models). Because the goal is to optimize both cardiovascular and cancer outcomes, proposals generally need to show how cardiotoxicity mitigation can be integrated into evidence-based oncology care rather than treated as an afterthought that could interfere with effective anti-cancer therapy.

From an administrative standpoint, this is an NIH discretionary grant using the R01 mechanism, and it is labeled "Clinical Trial Optional," meaning applicants may propose studies that include clinical trials, but a trial is not required. The activity areas are listed under education and health, and the associated CFDA numbers are 93.393 and 93.837. The original closing date in the source information is December 17, 2018, and the record creation date is November 2, 2017. The award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided listing.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of domestic organizations and governments, reflecting NIH's interest in drawing proposals from academic centers, healthcare systems, nonprofits, and other research-capable entities. Eligible applicants include state, county, city/township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. The FOA also explicitly notes additional eligible applicant categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations. It also allows non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations), regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions, along with eligible federal agencies.

Overall, this opportunity is geared toward research that makes cardio-oncology care more proactive and evidence-driven: identifying who is at risk, measuring and defining cardiac injury consistently, and integrating monitoring and intervention strategies into standard cancer treatment so that patients can receive effective therapy with fewer short- and long-term cardiovascular complications.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Improving Outcomes in Cancer Treatment-Related Cardiotoxicity (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.393, 93.837.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-11-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-12-17. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PA 18 003

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: