Breast Cancer Alliance invites clinical doctors and research scientists at any stage of their careers, including post docs, whose current proposal is focused on breast cancer, to apply for an Exceptional Project Grant.
This award recognizes creative, unique and innovative research related to breast cancer.
The term of the Exceptional Project Grant is one year, beginning on March 1,2026. The grant provides salary support and project costs for a total of $100,000, distributed over a one-year period.
Indirect costs, which are included in the $100,000 award, must be limited to 8% of total direct costs.
Researchers should coordinate with their institutions, as BCA will accept a maximum of ONLY TWO LOIs PER INSTITUTION (YIG or XP).
Qualifications
Application Process
Prior to submission of a formal grant proposal, BCA requires a Letter of Intent (LOI); an a separate CV that must be completed using the online form.
The LOI must contain:
LOI forms and information can be found here.
Full Application Process (By Invitation Only)
Full applications for the Exceptional Project Grant are due on or before midnight EDT on July 19, 2025; are by invitation only; and can be accessed here. (link will be live once we have reviewed LOIs)
Grant Awardees
For general questions concerning anything NOT covered in our FAQ's below, email: researchgrants@breastcanceralliance.org
**You may only submit an LOI for each proposal for either an Exceptional Project Grant or a Young Investigator Grant. It is your choice as to which application best suits your experience.
To encourage a commitment to breast cancer research, Breast Cancer Alliance invites clinical doctors and research scientists who are in the early stages of their careers, including post docs, whose current proposal is focused on breast cancer, to apply for funding for the Young Investigator Grant.
This grant is intended to help advance the careers of young researchers who do not yet have their own major grant support, but who design and conduct their own independent research projects.
The term of the Young Investigator Grant is two years, beginning on March 1, 2026. The grant provides salary support and project costs for a total of a $125,000, distributed over a two-year period.
Indirect costs, which are included in the $125,000 award, must be limited to 8% of total direct costs.
Researchers should coordinate with their institutions, as BCA will accept a maximum of ONLY TWO LOIs PER INSTITUTION (YIG or XP.)
Qualifications
Applicants for the 2026 award:
Application Process
Prior to submission of a formal grant proposal, BCA requires a Letter of Intent (LOI) and a separate CV that must be completed using the online form here and must have been submitted by midnight on March 31, 2025.
The LOI must contain:
References for the LOI are not required
Applicants will be informed by mid-May 2025 whether they have been invited to proceed with a formal application.
Full Application Process (By Invitation Only)
Full applications for the Young Investigator Grant are due on or before midnight EDT on July 19, 2025, are by invitation only and can be accessed here. (link will be live once we have reviewed LOIs)
An Independent External Review Committee reviews and evaluates the applications.
Their deliberations are confidential and will not be shared.
Based on their results, and subsequent review by the Grants Committee, recommendations will be made to the BCA Board for final approval.
Applicants will be notified by mid-February 2026 of the decision regarding their proposals.
Grant Awardees
Grant Awardees will receive a contract to execute and return before the beginning of the grant term. Contract term modifications will not be accepted.
Grant awardees must submit an informal midterm report by February 28, 2027 and a final report within 60 days of February 28, 2028. Failure to submit the midterm report will result in forfeiture of any remaining grant funds.
An informal virtual site visit with BCA staff and Committee members is also required.
For general questions concerning anything NOT covered in our FAQ's below, email: researchgrants@breastcanceralliance.org
**You may only submit an LOI for each proposal for either an Exceptional Project Grant or a Young Investigator Grant. It is your choice as to which application best suits your experience.
Is an LOI required for a BCA grant?
Answer: Yes
Are Exceptional Projects open to clinical doctors and research scientists at any stage of their careers, including postdoctoral fellows?
Answer: Yes
Is it permitted to have more than one PI on an Exceptional Project?
Answer: Yes
Is it permitted to have more than one PI on an Exceptional Project?
Answer: If more than one individual will be formally listed as a PI on the project, and they are from different institutions, then someone authorized to speak on behalf of the institution in terms of committing to support, and who has direct knowledge of the status and qualifications of the PI, should each sign off on behalf of his/her respective institution.
Does BCA accept applications from institutions outside of the US?
Answer: No.
Can representatives/scientists at private or for-profit companies/foundations apply?
Answer: No.
Are there any specific eligibility requirements regarding the subject matter of the project and additional funding sources? For example, if I am working on a project that is partially funded by another source, would it be possible to apply for the BCA Exceptional Project Grant to cover a component of the project (for example, sequencing studies) that is not currently included in the budget of any other awarded grant?
Answer: There is no limitation on the subject matter of the project as long as it is reasonably related to the treatment, prevention or cure of breast cancer. However, the proposed project should be an  exceptional project that can stand alone. Existing funding for a related aspect of the proposed project is not in itself disqualifying, but we would not, for example, consider the payment for sequencing studies in an otherwise funded project to be eligible for an exceptional project grant.
Can affiliated institutions with separate DUNS numbers submit more than 2 applications?
Answer: If multiple affiliated institutions within a university or health care system each have separate DUNS numbers, each can submit up to 2 applications total, XP or YIG.
Are postdoctoral fellows eligible to apply for a Young Investigator award?
Answer: Yes, as long as they meet all the stated eligibility criteria for a Young Investigator. They must also provide a letter of support from their institution confirming that they will have institutional resources available to them throughout the two-year term of the grant.
If an applicant for the Young Investigator Grant is currently funded by the R00 phase of an NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award, are they eligible to apply?
Answer: Yes
What is the preferred format for submission of a full application?
Answer: The application should be submitted through the link on this page with all required components included in the document.
Is there a preferred format for the biohazards, human investigation and laboratory animal statements required for the application?
Answer: The content of each required statement should follow the NIH requirements for the corresponding statements.
Do you require a hard copy of the application to accompany the emailed copy?
Answer: No, but the electronic submission must be submitted by the deadline date, or it will not be considered for funding.
Do you need to be a US citizen to apply for a BCA grant?
Answer: No. You do not have to be a US citizen to apply, but you must be affiliated with a US institution at which the grant project will be carried out.
Does being a reviewer on BCA’s External Review Committee make you ineligible to submit an application for an Exceptional Project grant?
Answer: Being a current reviewer is not disqualifying for submission of an LOI or application, but an individual who is submitting an LOI, or is invited to submit a full application based on an LOI, would not be eligible to serve as a reviewer during the time his/her LOI or application are pending review.
What is required for the human subjects statement?
Answer: We don't require the full scope of detailed documents required by NIH, although if you have them and wish to submit this, we will accept it. If you have already received full IRB approval for the section of your project involving human subjects, then you can simply state that, and that will be sufficient for our purposes If you don't yet have that approval, or the proposed NIH documents, you can provide brief summaries of the plans for the pertinent categories, in a manner that will provide assurances to the reviewers that the risks, safeguards and proper population composition have been considered.
The mission of Breast Cancer Alliance is to improve survival rates and quality of life for those impacted by breast cancer through better prevention, early detection, treatment and cure.
To achieve these goals, Breast Cancer Alliance funds institutions that provide screening and diagnostic breast cancer services for underserved and underinsured populations through:
The programs must be located in Connecticut and/or in Westchester County, New York.
The term of the Screening and Support Services Grant is one calendar year beginning April 1, 2025.
Breast Cancer Alliance does not fund patient counseling, patient navigation, office supplies, medical supplies, financial aid (i.e. gas bills, transportation, rent, overhead, grocery gift certificates, fringe benefits, etc.) printing costs, travel costs, marketing costs, recruitment costs or training programs.
The Grants Committee of Breast Cancer Alliance reviews and evaluates each grant proposal. The results of the Grants Committee’s evaluations and subsequent recommendations are presented to the BCA Board for approval. Applicants are notified by March 2025 of the decision regarding their proposals.
Grant Awardees
The 2025 midterm report template is available here and due no later than October 1, 2025.
The 2025 final report template is available here and due no later than April 30, 2026.
Breast Cancer Alliance is the only non-profit which funds Breast Surgical Fellowships. Through this funding, BCA seeks to help transform talented surgeons into expert, compassionate breast specialists who will go on to become leaders in their field, thereby improving outcomes and survival rates.
We take great pride in the success of our program in funding promising young surgeons throughout the United States.
The term of the Breast Surgical Fellowship is one year, from August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2026. The grant award is $75,000.
Applications are due on or before midnight on December 1, 2025. Applications after the deadline will not be considered.
The 2026 application is available here.
Application Process:
Institutions applying for the 2026 award must:
Institutions should only put forth applicants who:
Additionally:
Applicants will be notified by March 2026 of the decision regarding their proposals. Distributions will be made after a contract is signed. Contract term modifications will not be accepted.
Any publicity associated with this program and any papers published in association with the work done during, or as a result of, this fellowship must recognize the Breast Cancer Alliance.
For questions about fellowship funding please email: fellowships@breastcanceralliance.org.
