The total award amount is $50,000 payable on July 1 and January 1 in two equal installments.  The number of YIA grants in each funding cycle is not predetermined by The ASCO Cancer Foundation.  Awards are given based on individual merit and availability of funds.

The budget guidelines are as follows:

• Research support:  At least $46,000 should support costs directly related to the research project such as personnel salary, supplies, equipment, and other expenses.  Patient care costs that are reimbursable by a third-party payor are unallowable costs.
• Travel:  Up to $1,500 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 $2,500 (or 5% of the yearly total award amount) can be applied to overhead or facilities and administrative costs of the recipient's institution in administering the recipient's research project.
  

The Young Investigator Award is intended to support proposals with a clinical research focus.  ASCO's definition of clinical research is "hypothesis-driven research that employs measurements in whole patients of normal human subjects, in conjunction with laboratory measurements as appropriate, on the subjects of clinical biology, natural history, prevention, screening, diagnosis, therapy, or epidemiology of neoplastic disease" (Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vol. 14, No. 2, 1996 pp. 666-670).  In Young Investigator Award proposals, preclinical in vitro and/or animal studies are acceptable as long as the outcome of these studies would ultimately lead to patient-oriented clinical research.

The applicant must meet the following criteria:

• Be a physician (MD, DO, or international equivalent with explanation) who is currently in the last two years of his/her final subspecialty training at an academic medical institution at the time of grant submission.
• An institutional commitment for a faculty appointment at the time of grant submission is not required, but the applicant should be working in an oncology laboratory or clinical research setting
• Have a mentor in the proposed research field from the sponsoring institution. The mentor must assume responsibility and provide guidance for the research. If the mentor is not an active ASCO member, a supporting letter from an active ASCO member must be included. 
• Be planning an investigative career in clinical oncology
• Be a member of ASCO or have submitted a membership application with the grant application
• Be able to commit at least 60% of full-time effort in research (applies to total research, not just the proposed project) during the award period.
• An MD, PhD is eligible if the terminal degree is completed prior to the start of the grant period.  For foreign-trained physicians, equivalency will be determined on a case by case basis.
• Eligible physicians may submit only one application to The ASCO Cancer Foundation per year

The ASCO Cancer Foundation Grants Selection Committee reserves the right to evaluate and determine applicants’ eligibility based on the information and justifications included in the application materials.

Key Dates

Online Applications Open:  July 1, 2009

Full Application Due:  September 9, 2009 by 5 pm EDT

Notification:  April 2010

Award Term:  July 1, 2010 - June 30, 2011

Applicants are encouraged to start their application early due to the complexity of the online application process.

Full Application

All applications must be submitted in accordance with the requirements and instructions of the Request for Proposals (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 by 5:00pm EDT on September 9, 2009.

Mandatory Components

1. Contact Information
2. Project Information (includes Abstract, IRB, and Animal Use Assurances)
3. Personal Statement
4. Applicant's Biosketch
5. Research Plan
6. Cited References
7. Budget and Justification
8. Mentor's Biosketch
9. Mentor's Letter of Support
10. Institutional Letter of Support from Department Chair or Dean
11. Institutional Approval Face Sheet Signed by the Institutional Approver

Optional Components

1. Clinical Protocol (strongly encouraged to attach this document)
2. Prior Publications
3. Sponsor's Biosketch (required if mentor is not an ASCO member)
4. Sponsor's Letter of Support (required if mentor is not an ASCO member)

Download the Full Request for Proposals (RFP)

The online application will open on July 1, 2009.  Please return to this site at that time for the most current application requirements and to initiate your application.

The ASCO Cancer Foundation Grants Selection Committee will select the recipient based on the following criteria:

• Significance and originality of the proposed study and hypothesis
• Appropriateness, feasibility, and adequacy of the proposed experiment and methodology
• A focus on patient-oriented and, ultimately, clinical research
• The qualifications and experiences of the applicant. Factors considered include the quality and extent of past education, scientific training, research experience, research originality, productivity, potential for independent investigation, and commitment to a career in clinical oncology research.
• Availability of institutional resources to support the proposed project
• Quality of the mentor and the plan for mentor interactions with the applicant