2026 Bio-Therapeutics Impact Grant

Eligibility

• Applicant institutions must be based in the United States or Canada. Applicants need not be United States citizens. Funds must be granted to nonprofit institutions or organizations. 

• Applicants must have an MD, PhD, or MD/PhD (or equivalent) and be appointed to the level of Assistant Professor or higher.

• Study team has completed pre-clinical studies informing the trial and holds an approved IND. 

• Demonstrates a track record of implementing and executing biologics clinical trials through publishing a prior investigator-initiated clinical trial as a lead PI or as a member of a study committee. 

• Applicants working within a consortium are eligible. See restrictions below related to networks with established per-patient reimbursement mechanisms already in place.

Summary

The ALSF Bio-Therapeutics Impact Award provides funding to support investigator-initiated clinical trials using biologic therapies, including but not limited to immunotherapy (including cell therapies), gene therapy, and small molecules. This grant category was initiated to accelerate the development of clinical trials for promising biologic approaches to treat childhood cancers. 

ALSF’s Travel For Care program is available to patients enrolled in the clinical trial supported by this award. A medical representative must apply on behalf of the families who meet our criteria as listed in the Travel For Care guidelines. The online request form must specify that the clinical trial is funded by ALSF’s Bio-Therapeutics Impact Award.

Overhead

Indirect costs are not allowed. 

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

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.

RESOURCES

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be!

Contact the following Research Service units for support with:

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:

Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST).

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.

For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage.

Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.

EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Research Security:

The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

Pre-Award Submissions:
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application