Canadian Cancer Society Data Transformation Grants

Eligibility

Principal applicants to this program must either:

• Hold a leadership position in a non-profit or governmental organization whose mandate includes cancer data or cancer care,
• Hold an academic appointment at an eligible Canadian host institution.

A Principal Applicant who meets the eligibility criteria, and a team with the appropriate expertise and experience, including with the proposed methodology, the evidence-based intervention (where relevant), and with the community being engaged, are eligible to apply. CCS encourages multidisciplinary teams to apply or coordinate submissions.

To achieve this goal, it is recommended that team members are drawn from the following categories to fill gaps in expertise and/or resources. An ideal team would include:

• Implementers and decision-makers (e.g. cancer agency and registry leaders and staff, healthcare administrators, community-based or other practitioners, policy makers) must be integrally involved from the outset of the project and must demonstrate their interest in, and commitment to, implementation (through cash or in-kind contributions, letters of support detailing relevance, value and use of findings)
• Patients/Survivors/Caregivers with lived experience
• Health professionals with experience collecting relevant data
• For applications involving First Nations, Inuit and Métis-governed data and data systems, the Principal applicant or co-Principal applicant must self-identify as Indigenous or engage (an) Indigenous Elder(s) or Knowledge Keeper(s) to provide evidence of meaningful and culturally safe engagement with Indigenous communities.
• Identified champions, when relevant, in each province or territory involved to streamline efficiency and support feasibility and implementation. Support from champions should be demonstrated through letters of support or participation as knowledge users on the team.

For-profit entities are not eligible to apply. If you have questions regarding eligibility contact research@cancer.ca.

Summary

CCS is seeking proposals for projects that employ novel approaches to enhance the collection, integration and use of cancer data in Canada. Projects funded should demonstrate specific actions that can be scaled and sustained to improve the cancer data ecosystem in Canada. These may be pilot or proof-of-concept projects that show incremental progress towards one of these three priorities or full-scale, implementation studies having completed a successful pilot that are aligned with the identified priorities in the cancer data strategy. For the purpose of this call, cancer data is being defined as either patient data or population-based data related to cancer.    

Projects that focus on solutions to other issues related to cancer data are eligible, as long as the issue being addressed is justified in the application and addresses concerns related to accessibility, completeness, quality and/or timeliness of cancer data in Canada.  

Funded projects must:

• Test or implement an innovative solution to an urgent data challenge impacting cancer data and cancer care
• Focus on work that will bring more value to existing data
• Have the potential to create a more integrated approach to cancer data management
• Be able to readily access any required datasets or be evaluating a novel approach to overcoming data access concerns
• Articulate clear plans for knowledge translation, scalability and sustainability that have a high likelihood for success
• Begin delivering insights within 6-24 months of project commencement, commensurate to support received.

Total Budget*: Approximately $2.6M

1 to 2 year period (proof-of-concept, pilot) = Up to $125,000 total (~6 grants)

3-year period (post pilot, full scale study) ** = Up to $150,000 per year (~4 grants)

 * Additional partners or access to additional funds may increase this number.

** At the discretion of CCS, payment of subsequent years may be conditional on reaching milestones, as outlined in the feasibility section of the Full Application and part of the timelines proposed.

Overhead

Not applicable

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

Application deadlines

Abstract Registration (non-competitive, no RMS submission required)

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

Submission Process

Abstract Registration Phase is non-competitive so no submission to Research Services required. Complete the abstract submission at the Canadian Cancer Society EGrAMS website by February 21, 2024.

For Full Application NOTE THAT ORIGINAL DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED:

1. Complete Full Application on the CCS EGrAMS application system and print preview or save a pdf copy.
2. To initiate internal approvals, complete the Pre-Award/Application record in RMS (https://research.ucalgary.ca/conduct-research/additional-resources/resea...), attach the pdf version of your completed Application, and submit for approvals from your department head and/or faculty Associate Dean (Research). *Important: when submitting in RMS, please ensure that you allow time for academic approvals prior to the Research Services review deadline of 12:00pm on April 25, 2024
3. Once these approvals are obtained, RMS will automatically forward the Application record to Research Services for institutional review and approval.
4. Research Services will review, provide feedback (by email) if necessary, and will provide the institutional approval. If digital or wet-ink signatures are required, we will provide the capping institutional signature and will advise when ready.
5. Full Applications, including any supplementary documentation, should be submitted to the agency via the portal on April 30, 2024 by 3:00PM Mountain Time