Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 19 291
The NCI Research Specialist (Laboratory-based Scientist) Award (R50, Clinical Trial Not Allowed) is a National Institutes of Health funding opportunity from the National Cancer Institute that supports highly skilled, non-tenure track laboratory scientists who want a long-term, stable research career without moving onto the traditional independent investigator pathway. The core idea is to strengthen and retain exceptional lab-based researchers who are essential to the day-to-day continuity, productivity, and technical leadership of cancer research programs, but who prefer to contribute as key members of an established team rather than lead their own independent lab as a principal investigator on standard research project grants.
This award is open to applications that align with any area of NCI-funded cancer research, spanning basic, translational, clinical, or population science programs, as long as the supported work is laboratory-based and fits within an existing NCI-funded cancer research program. The FOA emphasizes that competitiveness is expected to be high and that the program is intended for standout scientists with a strong track record and clear value to an ongoing research enterprise. In practical terms, the R50 is meant to formalize and protect a specialized research role that many labs rely on, supporting advanced expertise, institutional memory, and sustained methodological capability that can be difficult to maintain through short-term or trainee-focused mechanisms.
A key restriction is that clinical trials are not allowed under this announcement, which signals that the supported activities must avoid proposing or conducting clinical trial work as defined by NIH policy. The focus remains on laboratory-based research contributions within cancer-focused programs rather than trial leadership or trial execution.
Eligibility is broad across U.S.-based organizations and government entities. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; 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 other than federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (when not institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other eligible domestic entities. The announcement also explicitly calls out a range of institution types that are eligible, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), 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 U.S. territories or possessions.
At the same time, the FOA is clear about what is not permitted on the applicant side: non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components (as NIH defines them in the NIH Grants Policy Statement) are not allowed. In other words, the applicant organization and the work supported under the award must remain domestic in the way NIH defines for eligibility and performance.
Administratively, this opportunity is a discretionary grant program under NIH, listed under multiple CFDA numbers associated with NCI programs (93.393 through 93.399). The opportunity number is PAR-19-291, and the posting date in the provided record is June 5, 2019, with an original closing date listed as October 18, 2019. The provided source data does not specify an award ceiling or an expected number of awards, so applicants would typically rely on the full FOA text and NIH guide notice details for budget structure, project period, review criteria, and current submission cycles.
Overall, the R50 mechanism here is best understood as a career-stability award for elite laboratory scientists who want to keep doing high-level cancer research within an established NCI-supported program, reinforcing the skilled workforce that keeps complex cancer research moving forward, while explicitly avoiding clinical trial activities and excluding foreign organizations or foreign components from participation.Apply for PAR 19 291
- The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NCI Research Specialist (Laboratory-based Scientist) Award (R50 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.393, 93.394, 93.395, 93.396, 93.397, 93.398, 93.399.
- This funding opportunity was created on 2019-06-05.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-10-18. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- 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.
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| Leveraging Big Data Science to Elucidate the Mechanisms of HIV Activity and Interaction with Substance Use Disorder (R21 - Clinical Trials Not Allowed) Apply for RFA DA 20 009 Funding Number: RFA DA 20 009 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| Leveraging Big Data Science to Elucidate the Mechanisms of HIV Activity and Interaction with Substance Use Disorder (R01 - Clinical Trials Not Allowed) Apply for RFA DA 20 008 Funding Number: RFA DA 20 008 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $350,000 |
| Novel Technology Tools to Facilitate Research Using Next Generation Patient-derived Cancer Models (U01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA CA 19 055 Funding Number: RFA CA 19 055 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $700,000 |
| Cancer Prevention Clinical Trials Network (CP-CTNet): CP-CTNet Sites (UG1 Clinical Trial Required) Apply for RFA CA 19 031 Funding Number: RFA CA 19 031 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Stimulating Innovations in Behavioral Intervention Research for Cancer Prevention and Control (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 309 Funding Number: PAR 19 309 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| Behavioral Science Track Award for Rapid Transition (B/Start)(R03 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 310 Funding Number: PAR 19 310 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $75,000 |
| Leveraging Big Data Science to Elucidate the Neural Mechanisms of Addiction and Substance Use Disorder (R01 - Clinical Trials Not Allowed) Apply for RFA DA 20 006 Funding Number: RFA DA 20 006 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Leveraging Big Data Science to Elucidate the Neural Mechanisms of Addiction and Substance Use Disorder (R21 - Clinical Trials Not Allowed) Apply for RFA DA 20 007 Funding Number: RFA DA 20 007 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Modeling HIV Neuropathology Using Microglia from Human iPSC and Cerebral Organoids (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA DA 20 023 Funding Number: RFA DA 20 023 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $500,000 |
| The NCI Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition Award (F99/K00) Apply for RFA CA 19 057 Funding Number: RFA CA 19 057 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Strategic Alliances for Medications Development to Treat Substance Use Disorders (R01-Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 318 Funding Number: PAR 19 318 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Participant Engagement and Cancer Genome Sequencing (PE-CGS): Research Centers (U2C Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA CA 19 045 Funding Number: RFA CA 19 045 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $2,500,000 |
| Participant Engagement and Cancer Genome Sequencing (PE-CGS): Coordinating Center (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA CA 19 046 Funding Number: RFA CA 19 046 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $350,000 |
| Clinical Characterization of Cancer Therapy-induced Adverse Sequelae and Mechanism-based Interventional Strategies (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 325 Funding Number: PAR 19 325 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Palliative Care in Home and Community Settings (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 320 Funding Number: PAR 19 320 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| Reducing Stigma to Improve HIV/AIDS Prevention, Treatment and Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 326 Funding Number: PAR 19 326 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $150,000 |
| Palliative Care in Home and Community Settings (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 321 Funding Number: PAR 19 321 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Grand Opportunity in Medications Development for Substance-Use Disorders (U01 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 19 327 Funding Number: PAR 19 327 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $500,000 |
| Circadian Patterns of Gene Expression Associated with Disease (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA HL 20 016 Funding Number: RFA HL 20 016 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health Funding Amount: $400,000 |
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