Early Detection and Diagnosis Programme Award
About this scheme
Key information
You must be:
- A scientist, clinician or healthcare worker
- Based at a UK university, medical school, hospital, CRUK Institute or other research institution for the duration of the award
- Able to demonstrate extensive postdoctoral experience and ability to successfully run an independent research group
Scientific remit
Early detection and diagnosis (ED&D) research seeks to detect and diagnose consequential precancerous changes and cancer at the earliest possible point at which an intervention might be made, reducing the burden of late-stage disease.
ED&D programmes will support discovery and translational/clinical research which is mindful of the clinical and population context.
The remit of these awards includes:
- Identification and validation of ED&D markers and understanding of disease trajectory
- Identification of high-risk groups for early detection and diagnosis research and implementation
- Data and computation-driven approaches to ED&D
- Development and use of appropriate preclinical model systems
- ED&D technology development
- Non-confirmatory clinical trials of early detection/diagnostic technologies or approaches
- Health systems research for ED&D
- Research into clinician behaviour and decision support for ED&D
- Evaluation of impact of early detection and diagnosis policies and interventions
- Research to understand and intervene in the behaviour of the public to enhance early detection and diagnosis
- Research into the health economics of ED&D of cancer
Programme Awards provide long-term support for broad, ambitious, multi-stranded programmes where the various work streams coordinate and integrate to address a central theme, asking an interrelated set of questions. They aim to encourage the research community to think bigger.
While the programme will have defined objectives, the expectation is that not all the questions will necessarily be conclusively answered within the tenure of the award, hence the opportunity for renewal of the programme. Parts of the programme may be a continuation of current activity; other elements should start new lines of enquiry.
We particularly welcome applications that bring novel approaches from the fields of engineering and the physical sciences that could be applied to cancer detection and are mindful of potential clinical need, patient and population impact. As part of CRUK’s longstanding strategic partnership with the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), there is an opportunity for any successful applications with relevant research components in these areas to be jointly supported by both CRUK and the EPSRC.
Out of remit
Proposals for research in these fields are likely to be ineligible for this funding scheme:
- Research which does not have any line-of-sight to impact on early detection – this may be eligible for our discovery research funding opportunities.
- Research that focuses on population-level trials of screening approaches – this may be eligible for our prevention and population research committe
If you are unsure which funding scheme is most appropriate for your research, please get in touch to discuss your proposal.
Awards are made up to £2.5 million for up to 5 years, and can be used to fund:
- Postdoctoral researchers
- PhD students (stipend, fees and running expenses)
- Technical staff
- Running expenses
- Equipment
The award can not be used to fund the salary of the Principal Investigator.
How to apply to this scheme
Application process
We strongly encourage you to contact the CRUK office for an informal and confidential discussion of your proposal. We will advise you on your eligibility and funding options. Please contact us more than 1 month and no later than 2 weeks before a submission deadline to help us best assist you.
All applications must be made online through our online grant management system, Flexi-Grant.
Submit an outline application
1. All applications for a Programme Award begin with an outline application (see application guidelines).
2. Your application will be reviewed by the Early Detection and Diagnosis Research Committee.
3. If your application is successful, you will be invited to submit a full application. All applications, regardless of outcome, will receive feedback from the Committee.
Submit a full application
1. We will provide you with a link to submit your full application (see application guidelines). Your Host Institution must approve your submission.
2. Your application will be peer-reviewed by one of our Expert Review Panels. You will have the opportunity to respond to comments at interview. Your full application will also be considered by our Patient and Public Review Panel.
3. The Early Detection and Diagnosis Research Committee will make a final decision on funding.
Timelines
|
Outline application deadline |
Committee shortlisting decision |
Full application deadline |
Expert Review Panel interview |
Committee funding decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 September 2024 | November 2024 | 23 January 2025 | March 2025 | May 2025 |
| 27 March 2025 | May 2025 | TBC July 2025 | September 2025 | November 2025 |
Before you begin your application
You must read the application guidelines, together with our Grant Conditions, before starting your application, even if you have applied for funding with us before.
-
If you are submitting an outline application, please read
-
If you have been invited to submit a full application, please read
Whichever stage of research the proposal addresses, from discovery to applied, proposals should have a clear line-of-sight to clinical/population impact, and should articulate this pathway and the evidence that will be required to advance along it. Implementation of this clinical line of sight may be either during or downstream of the proposed work (it is not mandatory for all proposals to include a direct translational component). Appropriate involvement of clinical/population expertise to ensure this line-of-sight is encouraged.
While therapeutic development is not covered by the ED&D programme (being funded through other CRUK mechanisms), ED&D research should acknowledge and account for the importance of therapeutics as context, and to help inform understanding of when surveillance is more appropriate than intervention.
Teams of applicants should be assembled to adequately consider these issues, involving collaboration between e.g. biologists, clinical researchers, engineers/physical scientists, maths/stats/computation expertise, population scientists, health economists, behavioural scientists and industry (as appropriate to the proposal). Multidisciplinary, overseas and industrial collaboration is encouraged when appropriate to the science proposed, and where clear added value can be articulated.
Applicants are encouraged to make use of existing cohorts and tissue banks as resources for ED&D research.
Applications will be judged based on:
- Scientific excellence and innovation
- Clear articulation of the challenge to be addressed
- Cancer early detection relevance
- Clarity of line-of-sight to clinical/population impact
- Team composition: are the requisite skillsets to deliver the proposed work and achieve impact in place? Do any collaborations between disciplines, institutions or with industry add value to the project?
- Is the required infrastructure in place to deliver the proposed research?
The 5 year rolling success rate (financial year 2019-2024) from application to funding for this scheme is 20%.
Cancer Research UK contact details
Please contact the relevant Research Grants Manager if you have questions about your eligibility or require any assistance with your application or active award.
For London and The South of England (including Oxford and Cambridge)
Ms Sara Castro
Research Grants Manager
For the rest of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Dr Emily Friar
Research Grants Manager
More early detection research opportunities
Early detection of cancer is one of our top priorities and we have funding and other support to help you develop your early detection research, whether you're established in the field, early in your career, or applying your research to early detection for the first time.
Disability and accessibility support
We offer additional support for grant applicants and grant holders who are disabled or have a long-term health condition.
Environmental sustainability in research
Researchers applying to our funding schemes from 2026 will be required to demonstrate the environmental sustainability of their laboratories by obtaining green lab certification.
More funding opportunities like this
We have a range of funding opportunities catering for a broad research community at all career stages and in any research field which can impact on earlier detection and diagnosis of cancer.
Case study
Professor Eithne Costello is developing a diagnostic test to detect pancreatic cancer at an early stage in individuals with new-onset diabetes with the support of our Early Detection Programme Award.
A new frontier for early detection research
We've made an ambitious commitment to invigorate early detection research by stimulating research interest, building capacity, forging new partnerships, and actively supporting a community for early detection research.
Early Detection Conference
Our annual Early Detection of Cancer Conference, held in partnership with the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, provides the perfect opportunity to network and build new collaborations with experts from many different disciplines.