Accelerator Programs
Advancing the pace of innovative research is a priority for ALSF. We take risks to fund proposals embracing innovation that have been deemed highly important but have not received National Institutes of Health funding, resulting in high impact. Funding encourages established investigators to push their research forward toward childhood cancer breakthroughs and ultimately new clinical interventions.
Bio-Therapeutic Impact Award
The Bio-Therapeutic Impact Award accelerates the development of clinical trials for promising biologic approaches to treating childhood cancer. These approaches include, but are not limited to, immunotherapy, gene therapy and small molecules. The award, intended for investigators who are initiating clinical trials or undertaking the pre-clinical work necessary to move into the IND (investigational new drug) phase, totals the maximum of $1.5 million awarded over three years.
Center of Excellence Grants
The Centers of Excellence (COE) program funds selected leading childhood cancer institutions with programs committed to developing and conducting early phase clinical trials for childhood cancer and with a pediatric oncology clinical pharmacology/developmental therapeutics program. The ultimate goal of this program is to expedite the development of novel therapeutic approaches for pediatric malignancies by establishing more robust Centers of Excellence in pediatric cancer drug development and through training the next generation of leaders in preclinical and clinical drug development. Fifty percent of the funds are used to enhance the Center’s clinical trial infrastructure. The remaining fifty percent is used to support the training of physician scholars in drug development.
The ALSF Centers of Excellence work together to run collaborative clinical trials efficiently and purposefully across their institutions. With the broad support from ALSF, they are able provide clinical trial options to hundreds of patients each year.
Crazy 8 Initiative
The Crazy 8 Initiative Award will fund research into innovative and rigorous approaches that directly address the most intractable issues in pediatric cancer research today. This award is designed to coalesce cross-disciplinary cores of scientists working collaboratively in order to accelerate the pace of discovering new cures. The budget for this award is between $3-5 million USD over four years.
Crazy 8 Initiative Pilot Projects
To jump start the research ideas that came out of the Crazy 8 Initiative Meeting, ALSF supported 11 pilot projects in 2019, with at least one project for each Crazy 8 area of need.
Epidemiology Grants
These grants are designed to support the research of investigators who have a specific focus on the epidemiology of childhood cancer, early detection of childhood cancer, or the prevention of childhood cancer. Awards are $100,000 per year for two years.
Innovation Grants
These grants are designed to provide critical and significant seed funding for experienced investigators with a novel and promising approach to finding causes and cures for childhood cancers. A Letter of Intent is required. The Innovation Award amount totals $250,000 over two years. The Award may not be renewed, however, one no cost extensions are allowable.
RARE Grant Program (Research Accelerating RUNX1 Exploration)
The Research Accelerating RUNX1 Exploration Grant is a two-year award designed to fund research that will lead to the development of therapies for patients with RUNX1-FPD that will either intercept the transition from a precancer state (clonal hematopoiesis) to MDS/AML or prevention of cancer (before clonal hematopoiesis). The RARE Grant is $250,000 over 2 years (maximum $125,000 per year may be requested).
Phase I/II Infrastructure Grants
Doctors have identified a critical lack of funding for support personnel who speed up the process of enrolling children with cancer in clinical trials. With grants from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, hospitals across the country have created new positions, specifically focused on filling this critical need, bringing the latest treatments to more children.
Please note that the Phase I/II Infrastructure grant is not offered every year. Please view our Grants Calendar for upcoming grant opportunities.
R Accelerated Award Grants
This grant provides funding to scientists focused on research in pediatric oncology that support ALSF’s mission to find cures and better treatments for childhood cancers. Applicants must have an original project that is not currently being funded with a clear focus on accelerating the discovery of more effective, less toxic therapy for childhood cancers. Research projects should address a testable hypothesis based on strong scientific rationale. Applicants must be recipients of a pediatric cancer research focused NIH R01 award or equivalent (e.g.: ACS etc.) within the last five years. Demonstration of continued commitment to pediatric cancer investigation as well as institutional support are critical components of a successful application. The award totals $800,000 over four years.
*This grant category's goal is to both advance the pace of innovative research and support researchers pursuing a long-term career in pediatric oncology. Therefore, guidelines are cross-posted under Early Career and Accelerator program areas.
Download the 2024 R Accelerated Grant Application Guidelines
Reach Grants
This award is designed to move hypothesis-driven research toward the clinic. A successful application will identify an unmet clinical need relevant to the care of patients with pediatric cancer and describe how the work performed will allow for the translation of hypothesis-driven research to the clinic, keeping broader clinical testing and implementation in view. A maximum of $250,000 in total costs will be awarded over two years.
Download the 2024 Reach Grant Application Guidelines
Single-cell Pediatric Cancer Atlas Grant
ALSF seeks to build a Pediatric Cancer Atlas as an open resource for discovery with an initial goal of producing data that can be harmonized. ALSF seeks researchers to create datasets that profile pediatric cancers at a single-cell resolution level. Single-cell profiling can provide insights into the heterogeneity of cells in a tumor and the surrounding tumor microenvironment, as well as variability in the states of cancer cells, all of which can influence the cancer’s response to treatments. The budget for this award is $200,000 USD over one year.
