DoW Rare Cancers Idea Development Award

The Department of the Army’s U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command is issuing the FY26 Rare Cancers Research Program Idea Development Award to support innovative, high-impact research focused on rare cancers, with the goal of advancing understanding of disease causes and progression and improving outcomes for affected patients. This funding opportunity, identified by solicitation number HT942526RCRPIDA, is governed by the Department of Defense Grant and Agreement Regulations (DoDGARs) rather than traditional FAR clauses, and is open to extramural and intramural applicants through Grants.gov and eBRAP respectively. Applicants must first submit a preproposal by August 19, 2026, and, if invited, submit a full application by November 18, 2026. Proposals must clearly articulate a hypothesis, specific aims, and experimental design that demonstrate scientific rigor, reproducibility, and feasibility, with a required exploratory aim to support discovery-driven research. Preliminary data are necessary but do not need to originate from the specific rare cancer being studied, and all research must align with one or more of the FY26 RCRP focus areas. Clinical trials are explicitly prohibited. The award has a maximum period of performance of three years with a total cost cap of $490,000 per project, and approximately $7.35 million is anticipated to fund up to 15 awards. All applicants are required to demonstrate the potential impact of their research on the rare cancer patient community through a one-page lay abstract and a supporting impact statement, and must submit a comprehensive set of attachments including a project narrative (10 pages), technical abstract (one page), statement of work (three pages) with data sharing milestones, biographical sketches, current/pending support documents, and a completed research and related budget. Applications involving human or animal subjects must receive approval from both institutional review boards and the DHA R&D Office of Research and Regulatory Compliance. Organizational transfers are prohibited during the final year of performance, and the principal investigator or institution may be changed only on a case-by-case basis with program approval. Recipients must comply with federal reporting requirements, including annual and final technical progress reports using the Research Performance Progress Report format, and organizations with cumulative federal awards over $10 million must semiannually disclose civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings in SAM. Applicants must maintain active registrations in SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and eBRAP.org, and must include their Unique Entity Identifier