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Innovation to impact grants

Innovation to Impact Grants (i2I) are intended to support the further development of significant findings from a funded CCS Innovation or CBCF grant.
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Note that this program is not being offered. For information only.

*Note update to eligibility criteria regarding pursuit of ‘logical next steps’ from an Innovation or CBCF grant.

Note extended window of eligibility: Only investigators with a funded Innovation Grant (including Prevention Innovation Grants)/CBCF Grant with a project end date between January 1, 2017 and October 31, 2020 are eligible for this program.

Please see the eligibility and requirements section prior to creating an application.

This program is designed to support the next phase following a productive Innovation or CBCF research grant, with the goal of working towards or achieving a significant impact on cancer.

The Innovation to Impact (i2I) Grants are designed as the next stage in the funding pipeline for Innovation and CBCF Grants that have completed their original aims and have demonstrated productivity (such as publications or scientific presentations). Note that unexpected findings/outcomes from an Innovation or CBCF grant may be pursued through an i2I grant provided that sufficient data exists to support a compelling rationale for the proposed next steps.

Scientific focus of the program and eligibility

Innovation to Impact Grants (i2I) are intended to support the further development of significant findings from a funded CCS Innovation or CBCF grant.

Applicants are required to articulate significant achievements from the original Innovation/CBCF Grant (i.e., significant new knowledge, publications, intellectual property, technology development, or relevant endpoints) and clearly describe and justify the progression to the new research proposed. In other words, the original grant and i2I proposal must be linked by their overarching goal or objective. Applicants must also describe the potential for impact of the proposed project on cancer.

Deadline dates

Application guides can be found on the EGrAMS documentation for applicants page.
Full application due date:
N/A
Results announcement:
N/A
Anticipated start date:
N/A

Funds available

It is expected that up to 15 grants will be awarded in this competition.

A special call for breast cancer research is included in this competition.

Grant budgets may be up to $150,000 per year with a maximum of 3 years of funding. Grants will be non-renewable.

Funding will be provided to support the direct costs of research, including supplies, salaries, and equipment associated with the proposed work. Equipment requests should not exceed $50,000 of the requested budget however an increase in this portion of the budget will be considered as an exceptional case if the i2I application involves the development of a technology or a platform that requires specific equipment to do so. Indirect costs are not eligible.

Grant budgets per year
up to $150,000
Renewable
No
Equipment
up to $50,000

Peer review panels

Multidisciplinary peer review committees will be assembled to review the full applications. Peer review committees will consist of scientific experts with broad expertise, along with patient/survivor/caregiver participants, as applicable.

Review panel information can be found below. Please review carefully before making your panel selection, however, CCS reserves the right to determine the panel with the greatest expertise to review the application. Panel composition will be finalized after the application deadline, based on the best fit for each application.

Panel
I1a – Biomarkers and Genomics
Including the use of high-throughput methodologies like genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics and radiomics applied to cancer patients or model systems to develop mechanistic or translational insight or to develop biomarkers.
I1b - Gene Regulation & Cell Biology
Including mechanisms of transcriptional control, epigenetics, chromatin structure and function, translational control, RNA biology, post-translational modifications, telomere function, DNA damage and repair, organellar biology, model organisms, angiogenesis, cell migration, cell invasion, tumour environment.
I2 - Imaging and Technology Development
Including platform and tool development, systems biology, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), ultrasound, computer tomography (CT), radiobiology, radiotherapy, photodynamic therapy (PDT), optical imaging, microfluidics, nanotechnology.
I3 - Immunology, Signalling and Stem Cells
Including metastasis, hormone-sensitive pathways, growth-factor mediated signalling, immunotherapies, viral therapeutics, cancer stem cells, signal transduction, innate immunity, tumour antigens, immune surveillance, hematopoiesis.
I4 - Novel Therapeutics
Including small molecule and biologic drug candidates, rational drug design, hit and target validation, compound screening, medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, drug delivery systems, drug transport, drug resistance, combination therapies and pharmacogenomics.
I5 - Prevention and Quality of Life
Including epidemiology, prevention interventions, lifestyle and environmental risk factors, health economics, health services, quality of life, survivorship, palliative care, psychosocial issues, knowledge translation and exchange.

Applications

A maximum of one i2I grant application resulting from a single Innovation or CBCF grant is allowed and must be submitted by the Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator of the original Innovation/CBCF grant.

When preparing the full application, the following will be required:

  1. a public summary of the proposed research
  2. a scientific abstract (and non-confidential scientific abstract)
  3. demonstration of the significant achievements from the funded Innovation/CBCF grant and discussion of how the work outlined in the i2I proposal (no more than 2 pages of single spaced text) is related to the original grant. Note that a publication resulting from the original grant is not required, but it is necessary to include a clear description of specific outcomes and include relevant and sufficient preliminary data in the i2I proposal.
  4. a detailed scientific proposal clearly stating the aims of the project including any previous work done in the area, study design, methods and analysis; a description of the expected impact that research results will have on reducing the burden of cancer; details of the investigator(s) including which member(s) of the research team will be responsible for which aspect of the project and a rationale for their inclusion in the project, as well as a description of the research environment where the work will take place (no more than 6 pages of single spaced text)
  5. a vision statement explicitly describing how the proposed work could move the field forward and accelerate progress in cancer research.
  6. data figures/tables/charts and their associated legends (no more than 5 pages)
  7. submission of the original Innovation/CBCF grant proposal and scientific abstract, as well as the innovation statement (for Innovation Grants) (auto-populated).
  8. a budget justification related to the supplies, equipment and personnel associated with the research project. This must include the number of personnel required to complete the work and a description of their experience and/or education level and their commitment to the project. The budget request must be appropriate for the type of research proposed.

Specific guidelines for the online application are available here.

The review criteria for the full application will include the following:

  • evidence of significant achievements made in the original Innovation/CBCF grant
  • evidence demonstrating how the proposed work is related to findings from the original Innovation/CBCF grant
  • potential for impact
  • feasibility and scientific merit, including an assessment of alternative approaches to address potential limitations of the proposed research
  • qualifications and experience of the investigator(s) 
  • quality of the research environment
  • potential for the advancement of the Canadian Cancer Society’s mission to eradicate cancer and enhance the quality of people living with cancer
  • appropriateness of the term and amount of support requested

There must not be substantial overlap (i.e. more than 50%) with any pending application (including those at the registration, abstract or Letter of Intent submission stage) to any other CCS research program as of this competition due date. Duplicate applications will not be accepted. The onus is on the applicant to indicate the extent (or absence) of overlap.

Applicants are reminded to review the eligibility and requirements section for details on scientific and financial reporting, funder acknowledgement, Canadian Cancer Society policies on open access and tobacco related funding.

Last modified on: May 4, 2020