The grant totals $450,000 and is paid in 3 annual increments of $150,000 made on or about January 1 of each year of the grant term. The grant funds will be directed to the sponsoring institution and should be used towards salary support, supplies, equipment, travel, etc. necessary for the pursuit of the recipient's research project.

Award funds may not be applied to patient care costs that are reimbursable by a third-party payor.

The budget guidelines are as follows:

• Total Award: The total award amount is $450,000 payable on January 1 in annual increments of $150,000 over 3 years. The total cost requested per year should not exceed $150,000.
• Research Support: $137,000 per year should support costs directly related to the research project such as personnel salary, supplies, equipment, and other expenses.
• Travel: Up to $2,500 per year should be allotted specifically for the applicant's travel to the annual meeting and for any other travel essential to conducting the study. Attendance is mandatory at the ASCO Annual Meeting upon acceptance of the grant.
• Indirect Costs: Up to $10,500 per year (or 7% of the yearly total award amount) can be applied to overhead or facilities and administrative costs of the recipient's sponsoring institution in administering the recipient's research project.

The Advanced Clinical Research Award in Sarcoma is intended to support proposals with a patient-oriented focus, including a clinical research study and/or translational research involving human subjects. ASCO's definition of clinical research is "hypothesis-driven research that employs measurements in whole patients or normal human subjects, in conjunction with laboratory measurements as appropriate; on the subjects of clinical biology, natural history, prevention, screening, diagnosis, therapy, or the epidemiology of neoplastic disease" (Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vol. 14, No. 2, 1996, pp. 666-670). Proposals with a predominant focus on in vitro or animal studies (even if clinically relevant) are not allowed.

Preference will be given to proposals involving therapeutic vaccine or immunotherapeutic approaches for sarcoma. The ASCO Cancer Foundation will accept applications from a single Principal Investigator (PI) or from two co-PIs. This option of a joint application is intended to promote interdisciplinary research and to help bring advances in immunotherapy to sarcoma patients. There will be no preference for either single or joint PI applications. Both will be equally considered and will be scored based on the merit of the application and the proposed research project.

The 2010 ACRA in Sarcoma will only be awarded to two joint Principle Investigators if the two PIs both meet all of the eligibility criteria listed below.

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Be a physician (MD, DO, or international equivalent) who is in the fourth to ninth year of a full-time, primary faculty appointment in a clinical department at an academic medical institution at the time of grant submission.
• Have completed productive post doctoral/post fellowship research and demonstrated the ability to undertake independent investigator-initiated clinical research.
• Be an active member of ASCO or have submitted a membership application with the grant application.
• Be able to commit to 75% of full-time effort in research (applies to total research, not just the proposed project) during the award period.

The ASCO Cancer Foundation reserves the right to evaluate and determine applicants' eligibility based on the information and justification included in the application materials. 

The online application will open on October 1, 2009. A Letter of Intent (LOI) must be submitted online on or before August 6, 2009 by 5:00 PM EDT. 

The following components are required:

1. General Information
   • Name
   • Contact Information
   • Institution
   • Degree
   • ASCO Member ID/Pending ID 
   • Subspecialty Training Completion Date
   • Initial Full-time Faculty Appointment Start Date
2. Project Information
   • Project Title
   • Abstract (<350 words)
   • Subject Area
   • Focus Area(s)
   • Human Subject and Animal Use Assurances
3. Applicant's Biosketch - Applicants can upload their current NIH biosketch if they have one available. If they do not have an NIH biosketch, they can use the template provided in the online application. The biosketch must not exceed four (4) pages.

The LOI will be reviewed internally by The ASCO Cancer Foundation based on the following criteria: (1) completeness of information; (2) eligibility, and; (3) appropriateness of scientific topic. After review, applicants will be notified about the status of their LOI on August 10, 2009. Only applicants who have received an approval for their LOI will be eligible to submit a full application. Applicants will not receive feedback on the LOI submitted. 

Download the Request for Proposal (RFP) for more information. 

All applications must be submitted in accordance with the requirements and instructions of this Request for Proposal (RFP). All application materials must be in English and must be submitted online. No paper applications will be accepted.

The full application must be submitted online on or before October 1, 2009 by 5:00 pm EDT.

The following are mandatory components:

1. Contact Information
2. Project Information
   • Includes Abstract, IRB, and Animal Use Assurances
3. Applicant's Biosketch
4. Research Plan
5. Cited References
6. Budget and Justification
7. Institutional Letter of Support
   • Department Chair or Dean
8. Institutional Approval Face Sheet
   • Signed by Institutional Approver

The following are optional components:

1. Clinical Protocol (it is strongly encouraged to attach this document)
2. Prior Publications
3. Supporting Documentation

Download the Request for Proposal (RFP) for more information. 

The recipient will be selected exclusively by the 2010 ACRA in Sarcoma Subcommittee, using a peer review process based on the following:

• Performs patient-oriented research, including a clinical research study and/or translational research involving human subjects
• Significance and originality of the proposed study and hypothesis
• Appropriateness, feasibility, and adequacy of the proposed experimental design and methodology
• Availability of environmental and institutional resources to support the proposed project
• Prior research experience and accomplishments of the applicant
• Potential favorable impact on career development of the applicant 
• Involvement of therapeutic vaccine or immunotherapeutic approaches for sarcoma

Applicants will not receive feedback on the applications submitted.