The
St. Baldrick’s Foundation advances the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. Research grants are for specific two-year research projects that are hypothesis driven and may be either laboratory, clinical or epidemiological in nature.
Current funding priorities are divided into four categories:
- New discovery research.
- Translational research and early phase clinical trials.
- Phase III clinical trials and infrastructure support of participating institutions (primarily the fall grant cycle).
- Education of new pediatric oncology researchers.
In addition to research to understand the biology of childhood cancers and discover leads to more effective treatments, topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Adolescents and young adults.
- Survivorship, outcomes and quality of life.
- Supportive care.
- Epidemiology and pediatric cancer predispositions.
- Precision medicine.
- Alternative and complementary therapies.
FUNDING INFORMATION: Up to $100,000 for two years.
ELIGIBILITY: PIs should hold at least an MD, DO or PhD degree by the date the grant becomes effective. Applicants do not need to be U.S. citizens, but must be employed at an academic, medical or non-profit research institution within the U.S.
A PI may only be the lead investigator on one application per grant cycle. Co-PIs are allowed for research grants, but the LOI must be submitted by the lead PI.
Limited Submissions Exception
BU may submit one additional LOI/application overall for the cycle if they are focused on one of the following areas of high interest from donors and low numbers of past applications:
- Brain tumors – all types, including rare forms, especially atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT), diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG)/diffuse midline glioma (DMG) and glioblastoma (GBM).
- Burkitt lymphoma – all types, especially sporadic.
- Ewing sarcoma.
- Rhabdoid tumors – Extrarenal.
INTERNAL SELECTION: The internal selection process depends on whether your grants are managed by BU Medical and Charles River Campuses or Boston Medical Center (BMC). If you are unsure whether your grants are managed by BU or BMC, please consult the BUMC Home Institution Finder. Use that information to guide which process you follow below.
BU Process: BU may forward one application, unless the proposal meets the above exception criteria. Medical Campus investigators should submit the following materials via InfoReady Review by Oct. 26.
- One-page Letter of Intent (LOI) in the Foundation’s format, which includes the following components:
- Area of focus for the research.
- Relevance of the project to the Foundation’s mission to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives.
- Rationale for the project.
- Gant chart for the timeline of the progression.
- References may be included on one additional page.
- General audience/lay abstract for the proposed project (250 words).
- Updated Biosketch for the lead PI.
As necessary, an internal faculty committee will review and recommend a BU applicant. Foundation Relations will assist the applicant to submit their Letter of Intent by Dec. 8.
BMC Process: BMC may forward one application. If you are a BUMC faculty member who works in BMC space or a fellow whose faculty advisor is a BMC investigator, please contact the Program Manager of Strategic Research Growth, Carolina Giudice at carolina.giudice@bmc.org by Oct. 17.
BMC investigators do not need to submit applications through InfoReady Review for this LSO. The internal deadlines listed below only apply to investigators who submit grants through BU. BMC investigators should contact Carolina for guidance on next steps.
DEADLINES:
- Internal Materials Due: Sunday, Oct. 26, by 11:59 p.m. ET.
- Anticipated Notification Date: Monday, Nov. 10.
- Letter of Intent Due: Monday, Dec. 8, by 5 p.m. ET.
- Full Application Due: Friday, Feb. 27, 2026.
In requesting to be considered for this limited submission funding opportunity, you are making a commitment, if selected, to submit your proposal to the sponsor in a timely manner and to Sponsored Programs in accordance with the Proposal Submission Policy.
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