CDMRP Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program Discovery Award | W81XWH 20 PRMRP DA

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 20 PRMRP DA

The CDMRP Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP) Discovery Award is a Department of Defense funding opportunity run through the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) that is designed to spark bold, early-stage medical research ideas rather than support steady, incremental extensions of existing work. The central goal is to fund innovative, non-incremental, high-risk and potentially high-reward projects that could open up entirely new ways of thinking about a disease, condition, technology, or application area. Projects funded under this mechanism are expected to create new insights, paradigms, tools, or approaches and, most importantly, to lay groundwork that can lead to later, more developed lines of investigation.

A defining feature of this award is that innovation is the single most important review criterion. The program is looking for research that genuinely shifts perspective, introduces a new conceptual framework, or applies a highly creative strategy that is not simply the next obvious experiment after prior publications. The announcement is explicit about what does not count as innovative, such as running a standard, published set of in vitro assays to further characterize a model system, inserting already-known biomarkers into animal or clinical models, taking the next logical step in a prior project, or proposing work that amounts to a small incremental advance over published data. In other words, applications should not read like a continuation grant; they should read like a well-argued leap into a new direction that could pay off with major impact if it works.

Even though the program encourages high-risk ideas, it still requires strong scientific discipline in how the project is framed. The proposed work must include a well-formulated, testable hypothesis supported by sound scientific rationale and a logical study design. The expectation is not that applicants already have a mature body of supporting evidence, but that they can make a compelling, reasoned case for why the idea is worth testing and how the experiments or methods will meaningfully address the hypothesis.

Preliminary data are not required, though they are allowed. The intent is that this award helps generate robust preliminary data, meaning the output should be credible early evidence that can serve as a foundation for future projects and follow-on funding. Importantly, the absence of preliminary data will not be held against an application during scientific or programmatic review. At the same time, the notice cautions that including substantial preliminary data may signal that the project is already beyond the exploratory stage and might fit better under another award mechanism intended for more established lines of work.

The opportunity is open in terms of who can apply (eligible applicants are described as unrestricted, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full text). It is offered as either a grant or a cooperative agreement under CFDA 12.420 and falls under science and technology and other research and development activities. The listing indicates an expected total of around 75 awards. The award ceiling is shown as 0 in the source data, which typically means applicants need to rely on the full solicitation for the actual budget limits or that the ceiling is not captured in that summary field. The opportunity number is W81XWH-20-PRMRP-DA, with the original posting dated February 28, 2020 and an original closing date of April 30, 2020.

The program also strongly encourages early career investigators, including postdoctoral fellows or equivalent, to serve as the Principal Investigator when their organization is willing to nominate them in that role. This emphasis signals that the mechanism is meant to give newer investigators a real chance to lead high-impact ideas rather than requiring a long track record of prior independent funding.

Another notable aspect is the strict blinded review process. Reviewers at both tiers are blinded to the identities of the PI, collaborators, and the applicant organization. Because of that, the application must be written to avoid any identifying information or even indirect references that could reveal who or where the work is coming from. The announcement warns that including identifying details in prohibited sections can trigger administrative rejection before the application is even reviewed on its merits. Applicants are directed to the full application guidelines for specifics and to an eBRAP resource that highlights common blinding mistakes to avoid.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "CDMRP Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program Discovery Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 28, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 30, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 75 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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