The types of cancers that develop in children differ strikingly from cancers that develop in adults. Childhood cancers often develop as a result of cellular DNA changes that occur early in life, sometimes even before birth. Some adult cancers are linked to environmental or lifestyle factors, but cancers that occur in children are very rarely related to such factors. Since childhood and adult cancers are not the same, pediatric cancer patients often receive different types of treatment than adult cancer patients. Children's bodies tend to tolerate chemotherapy better than adults' bodies. However, young children are more likely to experience long-term side effects caused by chemotherapy and radiation therapy, which may affect them throughout their lives. Graciously supported by an anonymous donor, this special ICRF research grant initiative has been established to encourage outstanding investigators in Israel to focus on and expand their research in cancers occurring in children, leading to a better understanding of pediatric cancers, new treatments and, ultimately, higher survival rates and reduced treatmentand tumor-related morbidity. These grants are intended to support the research of established Israeli investigators working at institutions in Israel. Often, pediatric cancer specialists work as part of a multidisciplinary team to coordinate care. Applications that utilize interdisciplinary approaches with collaborating Israeli co-investigators are encouraged, but not required.

Duration and Amount of the Grant At the present time, funds are currently in place for one grant, to be awarded for a period of three (3) years, with total costs of $240,000 ($80,000 per year). Annual progress reports are required, and continued funding for the second and third years is contingent on progress in the preceding funding period, as documented in a progress report due annually on June 30. We anticipate being able to secure funding to award additional grants under this special initiative, should the application scores warrant it.

To Apply for the Special ICRF Initiative in Pediatric Cancer Research 

• Letter of Intent (LOI): ICRF requires that interested investigators submit a letter of intent (LOI) outlining the proposed research in brief, due no later than November 18. LOIs will be reviewed to identify proposals that best fit the goals of this special funding initiative. 

• Submission of a Full Proposal: Investigators who outline projects of exceptional novelty and promise in the LOI will be invited to submit a full proposal, due January 6. Notification of funding will occur May 1 or thereafter. If you are invited to apply, you may not submit any additional grant applications to ICRF as PI for the 2025-26 funding year. 

• Please Note: Applicants who were not invited to submit full proposals are welcome to submit a research proposal to any other ICRF grant category for which they meet the eligibility requirements. However, such an application may not be for the same research project as that submitted for the Pediatric Cancer Research LOI.

Applications and Templates Applications and Templates for applying for an ICRF cancer research grant can be accessed from: https://proposalcentral.com/default.asp. 

Further Information Up-to-date information on categories of grants currently available and on General Policies Governing ICRF Grants, including fiscal requirements for sponsoring institutions, is available on our website: https://www.icrfonline.org/grants/. 

Questions? 

For any questions or problems, please send an E-mail message to: grants@icrfonline.org

GENERAL POLICIES GOVERNING ICRF GRANTS The Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) supports cutting-edge research that will impact prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. To apply for an ICRF grant, the Principal Investigator (PI) must be an Israeli citizen planning to carry out all proposed research in Israel. (Proof of Israeli citizenship must be furnished upon request.) Application Submission, Evaluation and Grant Activation: RECEIVED BY THE ICRF NOTIFICATION OF DECISION ACTIVATION OF GRANT January 6, 2025, 12pm (noon) EST May 1, 2025, and thereafter September 1, 2025

Important Points Regarding Application Submission: 

• Applications that do not provide all required information will be rejected without review. 

• Only one (1) application per PI will be accepted for each submission deadline. 

• An individual may be PI on only one (1) ICRF grant at any given time. Thus, a PI currently funded by ICRF may apply for another ICRF grant only if the start date is after the current funding period ends. 

• The Principal Investigator (PI) assumes full responsibility for the entire content and language in the application, including any components produced by generative artificial intelligence (AI), and must acknowledge that responsibility upon application submission. 

• Email addresses for all investigators and institutional personnel contained within the application submitted to ICRF will be added to the ICRF email list. Those individuals will receive regular updates and other important information. Recipients will have the option to unsubscribe from said emails.

Application Evaluation and Funding Notification: 

• Applications are evaluated by Scientific Review Panels (SRPs). Review criteria are: 

 Potential to advance the understanding, diagnosis and/or treatment of cancer within the next 5-10 years. 

 Scientific merit and innovation. 

 Feasibility, availability of key materials and resources, strength of preliminary data, and a realistic timeline. 

 Qualifications of the applicant, based on prior training and demonstrated expertise. 

 Scientific productivity, as evident in the publication record, especially during any previous ICRF-supported research. 

 Facilities, materials, resources and scientific environment available for the duration of the project. 

 For mentored awards: soundness of the mentoring plan and the mentors’ commitment to the PI. 

• Applications are scored using the US NIH scale of 1-9 (1 is the top score, 9 is the lowest score). 

• Following review, applications are ranked to generate a funding priority list. 

• Priority rankings and recommendations based on scientific review are presented to the ICRF International Scientific Council for further consideration and then to the ICRF Board of Trustees for final approval. 

• Applicants are notified of funding priority rather than a numerical score. 

• ICRF makes an initial round of funding commitments to applications at the top of the priority list. Subsequent funding commitments are announced individually, depending upon availability of funds. 

• Applications that are not funded upon initial submission may be revised and resubmitted for further consideration.

Continuation of Funding: Funds are initially provided for one year, with funding for subsequent years contingent upon progress as described in an annual report due on June 30. These reports are evaluated by the SRP Chairs/Co-Chairs. Funding may be terminated if progress is unsatisfactory, or if future plans diverge greatly from those described in the original proposal and are not well-rationalized. In those rare instances in which progress seems inadequate, ICRF will request that the PI provide further detailed information, including additional data showing results of experiments thus far, the rationale for the change of aims, and financial documentation reporting on use of funds to date. This reply will be evaluated by the Chairs of all SRPs (or their designates), whose recommendation will be reported to the ICRF Executive Committee for further action.

No-Cost Extensions: 

• Funds remaining at the end of a grant year will be automatically transferred to the subsequent grant year, if progress has been satisfactory. If a grant is terminating, a grantee may submit a request for a no-cost extension, due by August 1. Requests for no-cost extensions require a detailed letter of explanation from the grantee. Requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis. 

• If a grantee has been awarded a new ICRF grant, then the duration of the no-cost extension may be for a maximum of six months. If a grantee has not been awarded new ICRF funding, the duration of the no-cost extension may be for a maximum of one year. 

• ICRF will request additional financial reports, as appropriate. 

• If a no-cost extension is allowed, progress reports are required at both the initial termination date and at the termination date of the no-cost extension. 

• If the funds have not been expended in their entirety at the end of the extension, ICRF reservesthe right to request that the funds be returned.

Renewal of Funding: Project Grants may be renewed; Acceleration Grants and Career Development Awards are not renewable. Receipt of a Research Professorship grant is ICRF’s highest honor. While these grants are renewable, it is important to understand that ICRF is only able to award a limited number of Research Professorship grants annually, in order to ensure our continued ability to support a diverse cancer research portfolio of excellent scientists at all levels. Therefore, past receipt of an ICRF Research Professorship grant does not guarantee renewed funding at this level. Renewal applications are evaluated by the Scientific Review Panels along with applications for new funding, and they must be competitive with those applications to be renewed. Renewal applications must be submitted by the advertised deadline for all grants to avoid a lapse in funding.

Leaves of Absence: ICRF recognizes that PIs may need to take unanticipated absences from their laboratories, in the case of national or personal emergencies; such leaves do not require notification or prior approval. The following policies apply to anticipated leaves of absence, such as leaves to work in other laboratories or family leave to care for a child. 

• A PI anticipating an absence of three months or more from the laboratory must notify and receive approval from ICRF. Such leave may not exceed 12 months. 

• Leaves of longer than three months (including sabbatical leave) will not normally be approved during the first year of funding; instead, the PI may request that the start date of funding be delayed until his/her return to the laboratory; exceptions will be made in special circumstances (e.g. family leave). 

• A PI may request a leave during which ICRF support is suspended, with the total amount of support unchanged, but the duration of support extended over a longer time period. Support from other sources is permissible during the period of such a leave.

To obtain approval for anticipated leave, the PI must submit to the ICRF a letter outlining the purpose of the leave and describing how research in the laboratory will be supervised during this period, deputizing a specific individual to be responsible in the PI’s absence and providing that individual’s biosketch. This letter must be countersigned by the grantee's department head and the appropriate institutional official and received by ICRF at least two (2) months prior to the requested leave.

Changes and Amendments: 

Any changes or amendments to the scientific goals of the original application or addition or removal of key personnel must be approved in writing by the ICRF. Special Conditions: Should the ICRF grantee or the sponsoring institution specified by a grant vacate the project, the ICRF will automatically void the grant and terminate funding. Failure of the sponsoring institution to notify the ICRF of such vacancy will allow the ICRF to recover funds in toto. 

Change of Institution, or Termination: If a PI moves to another eligible institution, grant support may be continued, provided that: 

• The PI submits to ICRF a letter requesting that support be continued; this continuation can cover only the time remaining within the duration of overall funding. 

• The new institution submits to ICRF administrative paperwork supporting the change of institution. 

• The prior institution submits a letter of release and agrees to transfer any unexpended ICRF funds to the new institution within thirty (30) days of the date of release. 

The ICRF may discontinue funding upon determination that the purpose or terms of the grant are not being fulfilled. In the event a grant is terminated, the ICRF shall notify the sponsoring institution and the grantee in writing of its decision, the reasons therefore, the effective date, and the right to appeal the decision. A final Progress Report and Expenditure Report are required within 60 days of termination of a grant.

Biohazards and Protection of Human and Animal Subjects: It is the responsibility of the institution that sponsors a grant to provide oversight that safeguards the rights and welfare of human and animal subjects of research supported by the ICRF, and to ensure that investigators use caution in dealing with any toxic materials or potential biohazards. Applications for research involving human subjects and/or animals require prior review and approval of the appropriate institutional committee. Approvals must be written in English and submitted along with the ICRF application. For this certification to be valid, the date of the review may not precede the submission date by more than one year. 

Patents: No patent application for research supported by ICRF funds shall be filed by the sponsoring institution or by any individual investigator engaged in this research without prior consultation with and written approval of the ICRF. 

Publications: PIs accepting funds from ICRF are required to include the following acknowledgment in each publication resulting from ICRF funding: "This research was supported by a {insert grant category} from the Israel Cancer Research Fund.” (Please note that the name ends in “Fund,” not “Foundation”!) Grantees should send pdf copies of publications carrying the above credit line by email to the ICRF International Executive Office in New York immediately after the publication appears online.