With the Clinical Study Program, the Dutch Heart Foundation stimulates the further development of results from early clinical studies into clinical practice. The Dutch Heart Foundation provides co-financing for national or international, multicenter, investigator initiated clinical studies. If the results are positive, the outcomes of these studies should quickly result in improved care for people with (risk of) cardiovascular disease.
The earlier detection and faster and better treatment of cardiovascular diseases are goals of the Dutch Heart Foundation. To achieve this, it is important that promising research results from clinical research are tested on a large scale in clinical practice. These are often studies with a large financial scope. Because we believe that broad support is important, the Clinical Study Program is a co-financing program. This means that in addition to the Dutch Heart Foundation, there is at least one other financier who makes the study possible.
Co-financing
The size of the funding that the Heart Foundation makes available depends, among other things, on the contribution of the study to the ambitions and objectives of the Heart Foundation and the contribution to the topics on the research agenda for cardiovascular diseases. It is therefore important that researchers also involve other financiers in the research. These can be other health funds or government financiers, but also knowledge institutions, hospitals or commercial parties such as pharmaceutical companies or developers of medical technology.
The process in brief
Deadlines
You can submit a pre-proposal at any time. The assessment of this takes three weeks. There are two deadlines this year for submitting a full application:
Successful applicants typically have a solid foundation of publications, prior grants, and demonstrated capability to lead ambitious cardiovascular research .
For example, Maastricht researchers had previously received multiple NWO Vidi/Vici, Dekker, and CVON grants before securing additional funding .
The Dutch Heart Foundation strongly encourages public–private partnerships (PPS). Matching grants require at least 50% co-funding from non-academic partners .
Their DCVA PPS grants support multi-stakeholder teams including industry, SMEs, and healthcare organisations to drive real-world implementation .
The foundation backs cutting-edge, translational projects, including RNA therapies for inherited heart failure, immunotherapy-related cardiotoxicity, machine learning in vascular imaging, and novel cardiac rehab programs .
These projects often involve advanced technologies like siRNA delivery vectors, AI imaging models, and personalized patient-focused rehabilitation.
Grant types such as Dekker Postdoc, Senior Scientist, Established Investigator, and Clinical Scientist awards target investigators at various career stages to build independent research pipelines .
Recipients (e.g., Hugo Kuijf, Thijs Eijsvogels) receive substantial funding (€250K–780K) to initiate or scale impactful cardiovascular research .
The Heart4Data consortium, co-funded with ZonMW, supports sustainable data infrastructure (FAIR data, registries) to accelerate registry-based cardiovascular research .
The Foundation emphasizes IP frameworks in grant agreements—better IP planning leads to faster translation and reinvestment .
Programs like PPS and matching grants explicitly fund valorisation and implementation activities
Key Success Factor | What It Implies for Your Application |
---|---|
Established research outputs | Document strong publications and prior grants. |
Translational approach | Emphasize movement from lab to clinical or commercial impact. |
Collaborative structure | Include public–private partnerships (industry, clinics, SMEs). |
Named investigator status | Align with Dekker career-stage awards if applicable. |
Data & infrastructure readiness | Highlight data platforms or registry-based research. |
IP & valorisation | Demonstrate IP awareness and plans for follow-through. |
Emphasize prior success: showcase your grant history and publications.
Propose translational objectives: link mechanistic science to patient outcomes or market-ready solutions.
Build partnerships early: include proof of industry, SME, or treatment-center collaborations.
Fit career-stage awards: if eligible, consider applying for Dekker grants.
Include health data angle: show how data infrastructure could underpin your work.
Plan IP/valorisation strategy: articulate how discoveries will be protected and brought to use.
Eligible Countries:
Sponsor Institute/Organizations: Hartstichting Dutch Heart Foundation
Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit
Address: Prinses Catharina-Amaliastraat 10 2496 XD The Hague The Netherlands
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Sep 16, 2025
Sep 16, 2025
$918,156
Affiliation: Hartstichting Dutch Heart Foundation
Address: Prinses Catharina-Amaliastraat 10 2496 XD The Hague The Netherlands
Website URL: https://professionals.hartstichting.nl/samenwerking-en-financiering/financiering/klinische-studie-programma
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