Centers on Telehealth Research for Cancer-Related Care (P50 Clinical Trial Required) | RFA CA 21 029

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the Centers on Telehealth Research for Cancer-Related Care (P50 Clinical Trial Required) opportunity?

This NIH funding opportunity (RFA-CA-21-029) supports the creation of a coordinated national research effort focused on telehealth in cancer-related care. Instead of funding standalone studies, NIH plans to support a small number of large, well-resourced research centers designed to help set direction for the field and generate evidence that can be used across many real-world settings.

Which agency is offering this grant?

The opportunity is offered by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

What is the main goal of this program?

The goal is to advance the development, evaluation, and dissemination of telehealth approaches that measurably improve cancer-related care, while keeping pace with changing healthcare delivery models, evolving policy and reimbursement conditions, and rapidly changing communication technologies.

Why is NIH funding centers instead of isolated research studies?

NIH’s intent is to fund a small number of large, well-supported centers that can coordinate efforts, set a broader research agenda, and produce findings that are useful across diverse real-world oncology settings rather than results limited to a single controlled study environment.

What type of funding mechanism is this?

This opportunity uses the P50 center mechanism and is designated as “Clinical Trial Required.”

Does the program require a clinical trial?

Yes. This is a “clinical trial required” opportunity, and each funded center is expected to conduct a major trial as its core research effort.

What is the required “signature project”?

Each funded center is expected to carry out one “signature project” that is a large pragmatic trial testing telehealth approaches under routine, real-world conditions (as opposed to highly controlled research settings).

What is meant by a pragmatic trial in this context?

A pragmatic trial is designed to test telehealth approaches in typical care conditions so results are more directly applicable to everyday clinical practice. The program emphasizes capturing the diversity and complexity of real patient populations and real oncology care settings.

What kinds of real-world variation is the program expecting the signature trial to reflect?

The opportunity emphasizes heterogeneity across cancer types, treatment contexts, care settings, and patient needs, reflecting how oncology care is actually delivered.

Besides the signature trial, what else are centers expected to do?

Centers are expected to build shared infrastructure that supports additional pilot studies and rapid-response research to address emerging telehealth issues in oncology as technology, policy, and care delivery change.

Why is infrastructure and rapid-response research emphasized?

Telehealth is described as a fast-changing area where new platforms, care models, privacy and security issues, and policy shifts can quickly create new research questions. Infrastructure is intended to help centers adapt and study new issues while contributing to a broader collective agenda across funded centers.

What outcomes or impacts does NIH highlight for success?

NIH highlights outcomes such as improved quality of life, improved clinical outcomes, better patient-physician communication, progress toward health equity, and enhanced access to high-quality cancer-related care.

How important is health equity to this funding opportunity?

Health equity is described as especially important. Strong applications would be expected to consider how telehealth interventions affect different populations and whether they reduce or worsen existing disparities in cancer care.

What equity-related barriers are specifically mentioned for telehealth?

The opportunity notes that digital access, broadband availability, device ownership, digital literacy, language access, disability accommodations, and trust in technology can vary widely across communities and can influence telehealth’s impact.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes many U.S.-based organizations and government entities, such as state, county, city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; and tribal organizations that are not federally recognized.

Are housing authorities eligible?

Yes. Public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities are listed as eligible applicants.

Are nonprofit organizations eligible?

Yes. Nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status are included among eligible applicants (with exclusions as specified in the source for nonprofit categories related to institutions of higher education).

Are for-profit organizations eligible?

Yes. For-profit organizations other than small businesses are listed as eligible, and small businesses are also listed as eligible.

Are institutions serving specific communities explicitly included?

Yes. The announcement explicitly highlights Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs).

Are faith-based and community-based organizations eligible?

Yes. Faith-based or community-based organizations are explicitly highlighted as additional eligible applicant categories.

Are federal agencies eligible to apply?

Yes. Eligible federal agencies are listed among the additional eligible applicant categories.

Are U.S. territories or possessions eligible?

Yes. U.S. territories or possessions are explicitly included among eligible applicant categories.

Can a non-U.S. (foreign) organization apply as the primary applicant?

No. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply as the primary applicant.

Can a non-U.S. component of a U.S. organization apply?

No. Non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply.

Are any international elements allowed in a project?

Yes. “Foreign components” are allowed as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, meaning a U.S. applicant may include certain justified and compliant international elements or collaborations while still meeting the requirement that the applicant organization must be domestic.

How many awards does NIH expect to make?

The description indicates NIH expects to fund three research centers.

Is an award ceiling provided?

No specific award ceilings are provided in the supplied information.

What are the CFDA numbers associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity is tied to CFDA numbers 93.393, 93.395, and 93.399.

What activity category is this opportunity associated with?

It is described as a discretionary grant opportunity within the Education and Health activity category.

When was this opportunity created and when did it close?

The opportunity was created on April 8, 2021, and the original closing date listed is July 20, 2021.

What is the overall structure NIH is trying to create through this program?

The opportunity is structured to build a small, high-impact network of cancer telehealth research centers that produce practice-changing evidence through pragmatic trials, while maintaining flexible infrastructure to study new telehealth questions as technology, policy, reimbursement, and care delivery continue to shift.