LCRF Leading Edge Research Grant Program 2025 (up to $150,000) Deadline: 3 March, 2025

Applications are open for the LCRF Leading Edge Research Grant Program 2025. Lung cancer continues to be the number one cause of cancer deaths worldwide, accounting for an estimated 130,180 deaths annually in the United States alone. Despite being the most common cancer killer of both men and women, lung cancer research remains critically underfunded.

To help close this gap and improve outcomes, the goal of the Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) Leading Edge Research Grant Program is to fund innovative projects across the full spectrum of basic, translational, clinical, epidemiological, health services, early detection, disparities, and social determinants of health research.

The 2025 LCRF Leading Edge Research Grant Program will provide $150,000 over a period of two years for projects including but not limited to the following topics:

• Lung cancer biology
• Identification of new biomarkers
• Machine learning and digital pathology
• Development of more effective and less toxic therapies including but not limited to targeted and immune-therapies
• Genetic and gene-environment interactions
• Interactions and contributions of multiple factors (e.g. smoking, genetics, environment, societal factors) to disparities in lung cancer outcomes
• Mechanism of Antibody Drug Conjugates
• Novel approaches to immunotherapy such as bispecific antibodies, vaccines, cellular therapies, etc.
• Bioengineering approaches to understanding and/or treating lung cancer (i.e., theranostics, biomaterials, nanotechnology, controlled-drug release, and gene therapy)
• Supportive measures for people with lung cancer and their families, such as palliative care and telemedicine
• Identification of metabolic vulnerabilities in lung cancer

Grant

• These awards provide a maximum of $150,000 in funding over a period of two years.

Eligibility

• Investigators must be affiliated with a non-profit academic or research institution and must be postdoctoral researchers, clinical fellows, or early-career and mid-career investigators with less than ten years’ experience since their initial faculty appointment.
• Applicants from US-based and international institutions are eligible to apply and may hold any residency/citizenship status. Any questions regarding eligibility should be directed to the LCRF Grants Office before the submission of an application.
• Applicants are prohibited from applying if they have received funding from the LCRF within the last 4 years. Applicants are prohibited from applying in more than one of LCRF’s funding tracks in the same cycle.
• Senior Investigators with more than ten years’ experience since faculty appointment are generally not eligible for funding and are encouraged to mentor a junior team member through the application process. However, exceptions will be made for investigators with more than ten years’ experience in other disease areas or topics. Ineligible investigators with these or other special circumstances may request review by contacting the LCRF grants office (see Inquiries section below) before submitting an application and at least a week before submission deadline. Ineligible applications and new requests under special circumstances will not be considered after submission deadline.

Application

Applications will be submitted through a two-step process consisting of a Letter of Intent (LOI) and full proposal. Applicants whose LOI submission is reviewed favorably will be invited to complete a full proposal. Applicants may only apply for one LCRF grant per grant cycle.

Click here to apply

For more information, visit Leading Edge Research Grant.