Ovarian Cancer Proteogenomics Research Award | W81XWH 22 OCRP PGRA

Ovarian Cancer Proteogenomics Research Award (OCRP PGRA) FAQs

What is the Ovarian Cancer Proteogenomics Research Award?

The Ovarian Cancer Proteogenomics Research Award is a funding opportunity under the Department of Defense (DoD) Ovarian Cancer Research Program (OCRP). It supports innovative, clinically relevant ovarian cancer research that uses proteomics and/or genomics to generate new insights that could change how ovarian cancer is understood, classified, detected, or managed.

What is the main goal of this award mechanism?

The main goal is to leverage modern genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic approaches (including integrated multi-omics strategies) to investigate new biological concepts and disease mechanisms in ovarian cancer, with a clear connection to real clinical needs.

What kind of research questions does the program want to fund?

The program emphasizes well-defined, innovative, hypothesis-driven questions with clinical relevance. Examples described include work that can reveal mechanisms of progression, treatment resistance, recurrence, tumor heterogeneity, immune interactions, or biomarker candidates that could support earlier detection, better patient stratification, or improved monitoring of treatment response.

Is the award intended to generate large datasets, or to answer specific questions?

While data-rich molecular analysis is a key feature, the emphasis is not on generating datasets for their own sake. Projects are expected to use proteogenomics to address a specific, innovative research question and produce clinically interpretable insight into ovarian cancer biology.

Are clinical trials allowed under this award?

No. Clinical trials are explicitly not permitted under this award mechanism. Applicants should not propose interventional or prospective clinical trial activities.

Can applicants use specimens that came from clinical trials?

Yes. Although new clinical trials are not allowed, the program encourages use of specimens derived from clinical trials, such as archived samples from prior trials.

Does the program fund prospective collection of new patient samples?

No. Rather than funding the collection of new samples through a prospective clinical study, this award is built around analyzing clinical specimens that already exist.

What types of specimens are appropriate for this award?

The opportunity is oriented toward analysis of existing, clinically annotated patient specimens. Examples mentioned include biobanked tissue, blood, ascites, and other clinically annotated materials.

Are large specimen cohorts encouraged?

Yes. The program encourages work involving large patient specimen cohorts, particularly when paired with strong clinical annotation and thoughtful cohort selection.

What types of molecular approaches are expected?

Projects are expected to apply genomic and/or transcriptomic profiling, proteomic profiling, or integrated multi-omics strategies to interrogate ovarian cancer in a conceptually fresh and potentially impactful way.

What does "proteogenomics" mean in the context of this award?

In this opportunity, proteogenomics refers to research that uses proteomics and/or genomics (and may include transcriptomics and other multi-omics integration) to understand ovarian cancer biology and mechanisms in ways that are clinically meaningful.

Is preliminary data required to apply?

No. Preliminary data are not required, which is intended to lower barriers for investigators proposing new directions or applying emerging technologies.

Can preliminary data be included if an applicant has it?

Yes. Preliminary data are allowed, so applicants may include supportive pilot findings, but they are not mandatory.

What is the Women’s Health Integrated Research Center Clinical Proteomics Platform?

It is a DoD-supported resource established by the DoD intramural Gynecologic Cancer Center of Excellence. It is described as a specialized, cutting-edge proteomics capability aimed at identifying and validating protein biomarkers and surrogate markers.

Is use of the Women’s Health Integrated Research Center Clinical Proteomics Platform required?

No. Use of the platform is presented as an option rather than a requirement, but it signals the program’s interest in high-quality proteomic measurements and translational biomarker and monitoring concepts.

What clinical needs does the program highlight for biomarker-related work?

The description highlights practical oncology needs including improved early detection, better stratification of patients into clinically meaningful subgroups, and improved monitoring for therapeutic efficacy, outcomes, and recurrence.

What kinds of teams are a good fit for this opportunity?

The opportunity is a strong fit for teams that can access existing, clinically grounded specimen resources (including biobanked and clinically annotated cohorts) and have the analytical and computational capacity to extract meaningful biological and clinically interpretable signals from -omics data.

Who is the sponsoring agency for this funding opportunity?

The opportunity is listed as discretionary funding from the Department of Defense, Department of the Army (USAMRAA), under the DoD Ovarian Cancer Research Program (OCRP).

What is the funding opportunity number?

The funding opportunity number is W81XWH 22 OCRP PGRA.

What is the assistance listing (CFDA) number and category?

The assistance listing (CFDA) number is 12.420. It is categorized under Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

What funding instruments are available?

The listing indicates the available funding instruments include cooperative agreements and grants.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning it is broadly open to a wide range of applicant organizations, subject to any additional eligibility language in the full announcement.

When was this opportunity created and what are the dates listed?

The opportunity was created on March 18, 2022, with an original closing date of August 5, 2022.

How many awards are expected?

The listing indicates an expectation of about two awards.

What is the maximum (ceiling) award amount?

The award ceiling is shown as 0 in the listing. This typically means applicants should rely on the full announcement for actual budget limits, or that ceilings may be specified elsewhere in the program documentation.

What would a competitive application likely look like based on the description?

Based on the description, competitive projects would likely combine strong clinical annotation and thoughtful cohort selection with rigorous proteomic/genomic methods and a clear line of sight to clinically meaningful biology, such as biomarker discovery and validation, mechanistic understanding of aggressive disease, or molecular stratification that could inform future therapeutic strategies.

What should applicants avoid proposing under this mechanism?

Applicants should avoid proposing clinical trials, including interventional or prospective clinical trial activities, and should avoid framing the work as prospective sample collection. The mechanism is designed around analysis of existing clinical specimens.