DoW Rare Cancers Concept Award

The fiscal year 2026 Rare Cancers Research Program Concept Award, solicitation HT942526RCRPCA, is a grant-style funding opportunity issued by the Defense Health Agency to support highly innovative, untested, and potentially groundbreaking novel concepts in rare cancers research. The program intends to allot approximately 2.52 million dollars to fund about 18 awards, with a total cost cap of 140,000 dollars per award for a maximum performance period of two years. Applications are evaluated through a two-tier process consisting of a peer review for technical merit and a programmatic review for relevance to FY26 RCRP priorities. Key evaluation factors include innovation, research strategy and feasibility, and overall impact. The application process is a two-step requirement involving a pre-application letter of intent due by September 16, 2026, and a full application due by September 30, 2026. A critical feature of this solicitation is the blinded review process, which prohibits any identifying references to the Principal Investigator, collaborators, or organizations within the project narrative, supporting documentation, impact statement, justification statement, and statement of work; failure to adhere to this will result in administrative rejection. Additionally, applicants must maintain active registrations in SAM.gov, eBRAP.org, and Grants.gov, and must disclose all foreign affiliations for key personnel. Performance is monitored through annual and final technical progress reports prepared in accordance with Research Performance Progress Report standards.