Secondary Analysis and Integration of Existing Data to Elucidate Cancer Risk and Related Outcomes (R21 Clinical Trials Not Allowed) | PAR 25 096

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 25 096

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), led by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) with other participating NIH Institutes, is offering a grant opportunity focused on getting more scientific value out of data that already exist. The program, titled "Secondary Analysis and Integration of Existing Data to Elucidate Cancer Risk and Related Outcomes (R21 Clinical Trials Not Allowed)" (Funding Opportunity Number PAR-25-096), supports projects that analyze and combine existing datasets and database resources to answer important questions about cancer risk and what happens after cancer develops. The central idea is to fund innovative, well-justified secondary analyses that can improve understanding of cancer risk, inform risk prediction or risk reduction strategies, clarify survival patterns, and help explain differences in response to treatment, all without collecting new primary trial data or running clinical trials.

This opportunity is specifically about secondary data analysis, meaning applicants are expected to work with data that have already been collected, such as clinical records, environmental exposure data, cancer surveillance and registry data, health services and claims information, vital statistics, behavioral and lifestyle data, and biological data like genomics and molecular profiles. A major emphasis is on asking impactful questions that can realistically be answered with existing resources, and on using creative approaches to do it. Competitive applications may propose entirely new research aims that can be addressed using existing data, apply new or advanced analytic methods to established datasets, or integrate multiple datasets in novel ways to enable questions that cannot be answered from any single source alone. In practice, that could include linking population-level surveillance data with clinical outcomes, merging molecular profiling information with treatment and survival data, or combining environmental and behavioral datasets with cancer incidence to investigate complex, multifactorial risk pathways. The program is designed to accelerate discovery by reducing the time and cost associated with collecting new data, while still supporting rigorous, cutting-edge cancer research.

The funding mechanism is the NIH R21, which generally supports exploratory and developmental research. The listing provides an award ceiling of 200,000 dollars, indicating the maximum budget level expected under this announcement. The funding instrument type is a grant, and the activity area is categorized under education and health, reflecting the public health and biomedical research orientation of NIH programs. Clinical trials are not allowed under this NOFO, which means the proposed work should not involve prospectively assigning human participants to interventions to evaluate health-related outcomes. Instead, the work should center on analyzing existing datasets, developing analytic approaches, or integrating data resources to generate new insights.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations across government, academia, nonprofits, and the private sector. Eligible applicants include state, county, city or township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The opportunity also highlights additional eligible applicant categories, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). U.S. territories or possessions are also included, underscoring the program's intent to encourage diverse institutional participation and to support research that may address cancer questions in a wide range of populations and settings.

Key administrative details from the source information include the agency (NIH), the original closing date (2026-09-07), and the associated CFDA numbers (93.121, 93.172, 93.393, 93.866), which correspond to NIH program areas that can be involved in funding. The overall purpose of the NOFO is straightforward: enable researchers to take advantage of the growing volume of existing clinical, population, and molecular data, and to apply modern analytic strategies and thoughtful dataset integration to produce actionable knowledge about cancer risk and outcomes.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Secondary Analysis and Integration of Existing Data to Elucidate Cancer Risk and Related Outcomes (R21 Clinical Trials Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.121, 93.172, 93.393, 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-11-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2026-09-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 25 096

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