Closed · RFA-CA-20-005 · CFDA 93.393;93.394;93.395;93.396;93.399 · Discretionary

Research Answers to National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Provocative Questions (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)

Federal grant opportunity posted by National Institutes of Health, cataloged on Grants.gov.

Varies
Award range
Closed
Status
November 17, 2020
Close date
-
Expected awards

The verdict

Research Answers to National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Provocative Questions (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) is a closed discretionary listing from National Institutes of Health that offered Varies by applicant. Future funding cycles may be published under the same CFDA number. PlainGrants indexes 12,419 other opportunities from National Institutes of Health.

Varies
award range
Closed
application status
93.393;93.394;93.395;93.396;93.399
CFDA program
12,419
other opportunities from National Institutes of Health

Archived opportunity record

Research Answers to National Cancer Institute… is closed (last close November 17, 2020). Check the agency catalog for replacement NOFOs. National Institutes of Health still indexes 12,419 other opportunities here.

According to Grants.gov (extract vintage 2026-08-10), this record reflects the officially published listing. See methodology.

Deadline tracker

Application window closed

Closed November 17, 2020

Posted Jan 16 Closes Nov 17

Instrument

Grant

Description

The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to support research projects designed to solve specific problems and paradoxes in cancer research identified by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Provocative Questions Initiative. These problems and paradoxes phrased as questions are not intended to represent the full range of NCI's priorities in cancer research. Rather, they are meant to challenge researchers to think about and elucidate specific problems in key areas of cancer research that are deemed important and have not received sufficient attention. Some of these "Provocative Questions" (PQs) stem from intriguing but older, neglected observations that have never been adequately explored. Other PQs are built on more recent findings that are perplexing or paradoxical, revealing important gaps in current knowledge. Finally, some PQs reflect problems that traditionally have been thought to be intractable but that now may be open to investigations using new strategies and recent technical advances. The current issuance of the PQ Initiative includes an updated set of 12 PQs. Each research project proposed in response to this FOA must be focused on addressing the research problems defined by a specific PQ selected from the list. Projects proposed to address PQs may use strategies that incorporate ideas and approaches from multiple disciplines, as appropriate. Transdisciplinary projects are encouraged if they serve the scientific focus of the selected PQ

Wide-open applicant board · 15 Grants.gov doors

Research Answers to National Cancer Institute… prints 15 distinct Grants.gov eligibility doors (State governments; County governments; City or township governments; Special district governments; +11 more). Filter fit before reading award size as demand — most applicant classes appear on the row. The extract does not mark applicant cost-sharing as required. Instrument: Grant. Funding-activity codes span Education · Health (ED;HL). This eligibility-code string dominates the National Institutes of Health book (9,741 peers, 78% of 12,420).

Code 00
State governments
Code 01
County governments
Code 02
City or township governments
Code 04
Special district governments
Code 05
Independent school districts
Code 06
Public / state-controlled institutions of higher education
Code 07
Federally recognized tribal governments
Code 08
Public / Indian housing authorities
Code 11
Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
Code 12
Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (other than IHEs)
Code 13
Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status (other than IHEs)
Code 20
Private institutions of higher education
Code 22
For-profit organizations other than small businesses
Code 23
Small businesses
Code 25
Others (see official listing text)

Codes are Grants.gov eligibility category values from the extract vintage 2026-08-10. Confirm the full eligibility statement on the official listing or the Grants.gov eligibility reference.

Official Listing on Grants.gov

View full details, application forms, and submission instructions.

View on Grants.gov

Agency Contact

NIH OER Webmaster FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV

What to do next

Research Answers to National Cancer Institute… is closed; use the parent program and agency catalog for the next funding cycle.

  • Browse open federal opportunities in the same category when this listing is closed. Open opportunities
  • Look up CFDA 93.393;93.394;93.395;93.396;93.399 across all indexed listings before you commit to this opportunity alone. Eligibility finder
  • National Institutes of Health lists 12,419 other indexed opportunities on PlainGrants. Agency catalog

Opportunity deadlines and eligibility change on Grants.gov; PlainGrants mirrors the extract and is not the submission system.

Disclaimer: This information is sourced from Grants.gov and SAM.gov and is for informational purposes only. Opportunity details, deadlines, and eligibility requirements change frequently. Always verify current information directly on Grants.gov before applying. PlainGrants is not affiliated with any federal agency.

Data sourced from the SAM.gov Assistance Listings and Grants.gov. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainGrants