Cancer Prevention-Interception Targeted Agent Discovery Program (CAP-IT) Centers (U54 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA CA 22 055

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 22 055

The Cancer Prevention-Interception Targeted Agent Discovery Program (CAP-IT) Centers funding opportunity (RFA-CA-22-055) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement (U54) focused on building a coordinated, network-style infrastructure to accelerate discovery research in precision cancer prevention and interception. The core purpose is to support collaborative, team-based efforts to identify and advance molecularly targeted and/or immunologically targeted agents intended to prevent cancer from developing or to interrupt (intercept) early oncogenic processes before they progress to invasive disease, particularly in people or groups considered at elevated risk. A key emphasis is on creating an agile, effective research network that can move quickly, share expertise and resources, and work across disciplines to discover candidate agents that match specific mechanisms driving cancer initiation and early evolution.

This is a discretionary federal funding opportunity in the health and education activity space, administered under NIH CFDA numbers 93.394 and 93.395. The award mechanism is a cooperative agreement, which generally means NIH expects to have substantial programmatic involvement compared with a standard grant. In practical terms, the CAP-IT Centers structure is meant to function as more than a set of independent projects; it is designed to operate as an integrated program where investigators coordinate approaches, data, and priorities to speed targeted agent discovery for prevention and interception in high-risk settings. The FOA is explicitly labeled "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," indicating the supported work is not intended to include clinical trials under this award. Instead, the funding is aimed at discovery and preclinical or translational activities that are upstream of clinical testing, with the goal of delivering well-justified prevention/interception candidates that could later be evaluated through appropriate clinical trial mechanisms outside this FOA.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governmental entities. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; Native American tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education when applying under the nonprofit category); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also calls out additional eligible applicant types such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), eligible federal agencies, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions. These categories signal an openness to a wide range of institutional settings, including those that serve historically underrepresented communities, which can be important for prevention and interception research that addresses risk, access, and population diversity.

Foreign participation is restricted in a specific way. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic (non-U.S.) institutions are not eligible to apply as the primary applicant, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. However, foreign components are allowed as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement. In other words, the lead applicant organization must be U.S.-based and eligible, but the research program may include certain foreign collaborations/components when they meet NIH policy definitions and requirements.

The FOA was created on September 13, 2022, and the original closing date was November 21, 2022. The listed award ceiling is $720,000. While the "ExpectedAwards" field is not populated in the provided source data, the structure and budget ceiling indicate NIH anticipated supporting center-style activities with defined upper limits on annual costs (as represented in the ceiling value provided). Overall, the opportunity is best understood as NIH support for a coordinated set of prevention/interception discovery efforts organized as CAP-IT Centers, with the intent to produce new, mechanism-driven targeted agents and a collaborative infrastructure that can continually feed the pipeline for precision cancer prevention in high-risk populations, without conducting clinical trials under this particular award.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cancer Prevention-Interception Targeted Agent Discovery Program (CAP-IT) Centers (U54 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.394, 93.395.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-09-13.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-11-21. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $720,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA CA 22 055

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