Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 21 BCRP TBCCA
The DoD Breast Cancer, Transformative Breast Cancer Consortium Award (TBCCA) is a Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program opportunity intended to fund a single, highly ambitious consortium that can accelerate real-world progress toward ending breast cancer. The central idea is to support collaborations and concepts that can genuinely change the lives of people who have breast cancer and those who are at risk, rather than focusing on incremental advances or improvements to research or healthcare systems. The program is framed around developing new paradigms that tackle fundamental, field-level problems in breast cancer, with a clear expectation that the resulting work will be disruptive to the current "breast cancer landscape" and not just additive to what is already being done.
A defining feature of this award is its required consortium structure and integration. Applicants must assemble a team-based consortium composed of at least four and no more than five research teams, each pursuing distinct but connected projects that all align under one shared, central hypothesis. The projects cannot function as stand-alone efforts; instead, every team is expected to be meaningfully integrated so that the entire consortium moves in a coordinated way toward answering the overarching question. To reinforce multi-institutional collaboration, no more than two teams may be based at the same institution. Leadership is organized through a Consortium Director, while each team has its own Principal Investigator, and the consortium is expected to include not only leading researchers and clinicians but also consumer advocates to ensure relevance to patient and community needs.
The TBCCA is explicitly positioned as something different from other large collaborative mechanisms, and the solicitation is careful to say it should not replace, duplicate, supplement, or compete with existing collaborative research programs such as NCI SPOREs. It also should not look like a collection of related program project-style subprojects bundled together. Instead, the DoD is looking for a tightly linked, synergistic set of efforts that could not be accomplished by one lab, one institution, or a loose network of investigators working in parallel. Innovation is a core expectation, and the award includes support for "seed projects" during the performance period, meant to enable truly new, high-risk/high-reward ideas that might not be mature enough for traditional funding but could open up major breakthroughs.
In terms of what the program prefers to fund, the strongest applications are expected to bring together very different disciplines in a single overarching plan, ideally using an "ecologic approach." In this context, an ecologic approach means treating breast cancer as a complex, interdependent set of biological, environmental, behavioral, and societal influences, and intentionally integrating perspectives that reflect that complexity rather than narrowing in on a single dimension. Preference is also given to proposals that introduce genuinely brand new paradigms for addressing vital issues in breast cancer, including (but not limited to) the FY21 BCRP Overarching Challenges or intersections among those challenges. The solicitation also signals interest in proposals that commit to a deep, definitive dive into one or more overarching challenges, or that tackle a fundamental question that has not been asked or answered before, using an approach that has not previously been attempted.
At the same time, the announcement is clear about what will not fit the intent of this mechanism. Applications centered on structures resembling NCI Program Project grants or SPORE applications are discouraged, as are proposals focused primarily on drug screening efforts or testing combinations of therapeutics, narrowly targeting a single gene or protein, creating new formulations or derivatives of existing drugs, conducting broad genomic landscape mapping analyses as the main thrust, or merely improving existing technologies like mammography or MRI screening. These examples illustrate the program's emphasis on transformation over optimization, and on paradigm-shifting concepts over common, well-established research playbooks.
From an operational standpoint, the award is offered by the Department of Defense (Department of the Army, USAMRAA) under Funding Opportunity Number W81XWH-21-BCRP-TBCCA. The opportunity is listed under CFDA 12.420, categorized under Science and Technology and other Research and Development, and uses cooperative agreement and grant instruments. Eligibility is described as unrestricted (open broadly to entity types, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement). The posting indicates an expected total of one award. A clinical trial is not required, but the research may include Phase I clinical trials and may involve collaborations with pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies when appropriate; however, a clinical trial should not be the primary focus of the overall application.
Overall, the TBCCA is designed for applicants who can propose a single, cohesive, multi-institutional strategy with multiple interlocking projects that collectively aim to produce a step-change in outcomes and lived experiences for people affected by breast cancer. The program is looking for a consortium that can convincingly argue its work will transform what is possible in breast cancer prevention, detection, treatment, recurrence, survivorship, or risk reduction, and do so through an integrated, multidisciplinary approach that is bigger than any one lab's capabilities.Apply for W81XWH 21 BCRP TBCCA
- The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DoD Breast Cancer, Transformative Breast Cancer Consortium Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jan 06, 2021.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 23, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.
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Transformative Breast Cancer Consortium Award (TBCCA) - FAQs
What is the TBCCA grant opportunity?
The DoD Breast Cancer, Transformative Breast Cancer Consortium Award (TBCCA) is a Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program funding opportunity intended to support a single, highly ambitious consortium designed to accelerate real-world progress toward ending breast cancer. The emphasis is on transformative, disruptive work that can change outcomes and lived experiences for people with breast cancer and those at risk, rather than incremental advances.
What is the main goal of the TBCCA?
The main goal is to develop new paradigms that tackle fundamental, field-level problems in breast cancer and are expected to be disruptive to the current breast cancer landscape. The work should aim for a step-change in what is possible across prevention, detection, treatment, recurrence, survivorship, or risk reduction.
How many awards does the DoD expect to make under this opportunity?
The posting indicates an expected total of one award.
Who is offering this award?
The award is offered by the Department of Defense (Department of the Army, USAMRAA) through the Breast Cancer Research Program.
What is the Funding Opportunity Number and CFDA number?
The Funding Opportunity Number is W81XWH-21-BCRP-TBCCA. The opportunity is listed under CFDA 12.420.
What funding instruments are used for the TBCCA?
The opportunity uses cooperative agreement and grant instruments.
What does "transformative" mean in the context of this award?
Transformative means the proposed research is expected to create a new paradigm or fundamentally change what is possible in breast cancer, rather than adding incremental improvements to existing research directions, tools, or healthcare systems. The solicitation emphasizes disruption over optimization.
What is required in terms of consortium structure?
Applicants must form a team-based consortium made up of at least four and no more than five research teams. Each team pursues a distinct but connected project, and all projects must align under one shared, central hypothesis.
Can the consortium projects be stand-alone subprojects?
No. The projects cannot function as stand-alone efforts. Each team must be meaningfully integrated so the consortium moves in a coordinated way toward answering the overarching question.
Are there limits on how many teams can come from the same institution?
Yes. To reinforce multi-institutional collaboration, no more than two teams may be based at the same institution.
How is leadership organized within the consortium?
Leadership includes a Consortium Director, and each research team has its own Principal Investigator. The consortium is also expected to include consumer advocates to help ensure relevance to patient and community needs.
Is the TBCCA meant to replace or compete with existing collaborative research programs?
No. The solicitation states that the TBCCA should not replace, duplicate, supplement, or compete with existing collaborative research programs such as NCI SPOREs.
How is this different from a program project-style application?
The TBCCA is not intended to look like a collection of related program project-style subprojects bundled together. The DoD is seeking a tightly linked, synergistic set of efforts that could not be accomplished by one lab, one institution, or a loose network of investigators working in parallel.
What kinds of approaches are preferred?
The strongest applications are expected to integrate very different disciplines into one overarching plan, ideally using an "ecologic approach" that treats breast cancer as a complex, interdependent set of biological, environmental, behavioral, and societal influences.
What is an "ecologic approach" as described in the announcement?
In this context, an ecologic approach means intentionally integrating perspectives that reflect the interconnected biological, environmental, behavioral, and societal influences that shape breast cancer, rather than narrowing the research focus to a single dimension.
Does the TBCCA encourage high-risk, high-reward ideas?
Yes. The award includes support for "seed projects" during the performance period to enable truly new, high-risk/high-reward ideas that may not yet be mature enough for traditional funding but could open the door to major breakthroughs.
Is a clinical trial required?
No. A clinical trial is not required for this opportunity.
Can the proposed research include clinical trials?
Yes. The research may include Phase I clinical trials, but a clinical trial should not be the primary focus of the overall application.
Are collaborations with pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies allowed?
Yes. The opportunity notes that collaborations with pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies may be included when appropriate.
What types of applications are discouraged or considered a poor fit?
The announcement discourages applications that resemble NCI Program Project grants or SPORE applications. It also identifies several examples that do not fit the intent, including proposals focused primarily on drug screening or testing combinations of therapeutics, narrowly targeting a single gene or protein, developing new formulations or derivatives of existing drugs, making broad genomic landscape mapping analyses the main thrust, or merely improving existing technologies such as mammography or MRI screening.
Is technology optimization (for example, improved imaging) a good match for TBCCA?
Applications that mainly improve existing technologies like mammography or MRI screening are listed as examples that are not aligned with the program's emphasis on transformation over optimization.
Is broad genomic landscape mapping an appropriate primary focus?
No. The solicitation cites broad genomic landscape mapping analyses as an example of a primary thrust that would not fit the mechanism's intent.
Does the TBCCA focus on a single gene, protein, or narrow target?
Proposals that narrowly target a single gene or protein are listed among examples that do not fit the intent of this transformative mechanism.
Is drug screening or therapeutic combination testing a good fit?
Applications focused primarily on drug screening efforts or testing combinations of therapeutics are identified as examples that are discouraged under this opportunity.
What breast cancer areas could a TBCCA consortium aim to transform?
The opportunity is framed broadly around transforming what is possible in breast cancer prevention, detection, treatment, recurrence, survivorship, or risk reduction, as long as the approach is cohesive, integrated, multidisciplinary, and paradigm-shifting.
Is there a thematic preference for specific challenges?
Preference is signaled for proposals that introduce brand new paradigms addressing vital issues in breast cancer, including (but not limited to) the FY21 BCRP Overarching Challenges or intersections among those challenges, and for proposals that commit to a deep, definitive dive into one or more overarching challenges.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning it is open broadly to entity types, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement.
What category is this opportunity listed under?
The opportunity is categorized under Science and Technology and other Research and Development.
What is the core expectation around integration and synergy?
The consortium is expected to operate as a single, integrated effort where the multiple interlocking projects collectively answer an overarching question. The work should be designed so it could not be achieved by a single lab, a single institution, or investigators operating in parallel without tight coordination.
Why are consumer advocates expected to be part of the consortium?
Consumer advocates are expected to be included to help ensure the consortium's work remains relevant to patient and community needs, aligning with the program's emphasis on changing lives rather than producing incremental research outputs.
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