DoD Breast Cancer, Innovator Award | W81XWH 19 BCRP INNOV

FAQs: DoD BCRP Innovator Award (W81XWH-19-BCRP-INNOV)

1) What is the Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP) Innovator Award?

The BCRP Innovator Award is a Department of Defense funding opportunity intended to support exceptionally creative, established leaders whose work has already demonstrated an ability to challenge prevailing assumptions and shift how a field thinks or operates. It is designed to provide funding and latitude for bold, high-risk, potentially high-reward ideas aimed at accelerating progress toward ending breast cancer, particularly ideas that may not fit well within conventional funding frameworks.

2) Is this a typical project-centered research grant?

No. This mechanism is explicitly centered on the Principal Investigator (PI) as an innovator rather than being a standard, project-centered research grant. Review emphasis is placed heavily on the PI's creativity, leadership, and demonstrated ability to move a field beyond standard dogma.

3) What type of PI is the program looking for?

The program is seeking rare investigators who can articulate a forward-looking, paradigm-challenging vision for ending breast cancer and who have a track record of creativity and leadership. Examples of the kinds of past impact emphasized include changing a research direction, introducing a new approach to patient care, or otherwise shifting a field beyond prevailing assumptions.

4) What is the main goal or intent of this award mechanism?

The intent is to invest in a proven innovative mind and provide support and freedom to pursue unconventional, visionary research directions that could meaningfully accelerate progress toward ending breast cancer.

5) Do applicants need prior experience specifically in breast cancer research?

No. Prior experience specifically in breast cancer research is not required, as long as the proposed work is clearly focused on breast cancer. This feature is meant to attract experts from other disciplines who can bring new concepts, methods, or technologies into breast cancer research.

6) Does the proposed work still need to be focused on breast cancer?

Yes. Even though prior breast cancer research experience is not required, the proposed work must be clearly focused on breast cancer.

7) Is there a minimum effort requirement for the PI during the award period?

Yes. The PI must maintain 50 percent of full-time professional effort devoted to breast cancer research during the award period. The required effort can be supported through a combination of this award and other active funding, but the commitment level itself is a firm expectation.

8) Can the PI's required 50 percent effort be supported by funding sources other than this award?

Yes. The required effort may be supported through a combination of this award and other active funding, as long as the PI maintains the 50 percent full-time professional effort devoted to breast cancer research.

9) Are teams and collaborations expected as part of the application?

Yes. Team composition and collaboration are core components. The PI is expected to assemble a research team that collectively provides the expertise needed to pursue the proposed goals, reflecting the expectation that transformative advances often require multidisciplinary capability and strong coordination.

10) Is mentoring required?

Yes. Applications must include mentoring of promising junior investigators. This requirement aligns with the program's goal of cultivating the next generation of innovative thinkers while the PI pursues ambitious and unconventional research directions.

11) Are consumer advocates required to be included on the research team?

Yes. A distinctive requirement is the formal inclusion of breast cancer consumer advocates as part of the research team.

12) How many consumer advocates are required?

The application must include two or more consumer advocates.

13) Who qualifies as a consumer advocate for this opportunity?

Consumer advocates must be breast cancer survivors (individuals who have been diagnosed with breast cancer) and must be actively involved in a breast cancer advocacy organization.

14) What role are consumer advocates expected to play?

They serve as lay representatives providing independent, objective input about the research direction and its potential impact for people with, or at risk for, breast cancer. The opportunity also expects them to have strong working knowledge of current breast cancer issues and enough background or training in breast cancer research to contribute meaningfully rather than symbolically.

15) Are there independence rules for consumer advocates?

Yes. To preserve independence, consumer advocates cannot be employees of any of the organizations participating in the application, and their advocacy role must be separate from their employment.

16) What does "relevance to military health" mean for this award?

The proposed work must demonstrate relevance to military health by clearly connecting anticipated outcomes or benefits to the healthcare needs of military Service members, Veterans, military beneficiaries, and/or the broader American public. This relevance requirement reflects the DoD mission and is a key framing element for positioning significance and real-world impact.

17) Which government office issued this opportunity?

This opportunity was issued by the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, through the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA).

18) What is the funding opportunity number?

The funding opportunity number is W81XWH-19-BCRP-INNOV.

19) What funding instruments are allowed?

The program listed allowable funding instruments as grants and cooperative agreements.

20) What is the activity category and CFDA listing associated with this opportunity?

The activity category is Science and Technology / Research and Development, and the CFDA listing is 12.420.

21) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning it is broadly open to applicant organization types, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications included in the full announcement.

22) What were the posting and closing dates shown in the source information?

The source indicates a creation date of January 22, 2019, and an original closing date of June 13, 2019.

23) How many awards were expected?

The source information indicates an expectation of a single award.

24) What is the award ceiling for this opportunity?

The award ceiling is listed as 0 in the source data, which typically signals that the maximum funding level may be specified elsewhere in the full solicitation rather than captured in the summary field provided.