Funder: National Institutes of Health
Due Dates: November 5, 2026 (Resubmission) | February 5, 2027 (New) | March 5, 2027 (Resubmission) | June 5, 2027 (New) | July 5, 2027 (Resubmission) | October 5, 2027 (New) | November 5, 2027 (Resubmission) | January 7, 2028 (Closing date)
Funding Amounts: $500,000 award ceiling; direct costs limited to less than $500,000 annually; up to 5 years
Summary: Supports integrated imaging and liquid biopsy studies during cancer therapy to monitor treatment response and emerging resistance.
Key Information: Experimental imaging and liquid biopsy methods must already be developed and validated, or in final validation.
Description
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) supports R01 research projects integrating imaging and fluid-based tumor monitoring, or liquid biopsy, during cancer therapy. The program promotes collaboration among imaging scientists, assay developers, and clinical scientists to determine when combinations of these modalities improve assessment of treatment success, failure, recurrence, or emerging resistance. Clinical trials are optional.
Research may combine clinically established liquid biopsy biomarkers with experimental imaging, or established imaging with experimental liquid biopsy biomarkers. Imaging means in vivo molecular or functional clinical imaging; liquid biopsy includes molecular or cellular indicators in blood, cerebrospinal fluid, saliva, or urine. Appropriate settings include first-line therapy for aggressive or advanced disease, treatment of first recurrence with effective second-line options, and retrospective analysis of studies already using both monitoring approaches. Tissue-based assessments may establish correlations with imaging and liquid biopsy findings.
