Pediatric Immunotherapy Translational Science Network (PI-TSN)(U54) | RFA CA 17 050

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 17 050

The Pediatric Immunotherapy Translational Science Network (PI-TSN) (U54) grant opportunity, listed as RFA-CA-17-050, is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement created under the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative, a federal push meant to speed up progress in cancer research. The central idea of the program is to build a coordinated set of research Centers made up of collaborating investigators who can move promising immunotherapy ideas for children and adolescents with cancer out of the lab and closer to real-world clinical use. Rather than funding isolated projects, the FOA is structured to support a networked, team-science approach where multiple experts and institutions work together to tackle shared translational challenges in pediatric cancer immunotherapy.

Scientifically, the FOA is tied directly to a priority area identified by the Cancer Moonshot Blue Ribbon Panel (BRP), specifically Recommendation (B), which called for establishing a dedicated pediatric immunotherapy translational science network. The BRP’s vision was that pediatric cancers require distinct immunotherapy strategies, targets, and biological understanding compared with adult cancers, and that progress would be faster if experts were organized into a formal network focused on the pediatric setting. In that spirit, the program emphasizes three broad, connected goals: first, identifying new immune-based targets relevant to childhood cancers; second, developing new treatment approaches designed for pediatric patients, including (as examples) cancer vaccines, cellular therapies, and combination immunotherapy regimens; and third, defining the biological mechanisms that allow pediatric tumors to avoid or suppress immune responses, since those escape mechanisms often determine whether an immunotherapy will succeed or fail.

The FOA describes these funded Centers as part of the Pediatric Immunotherapy Discovery and Development Network (PI-DDN), indicating that awardees are expected not just to generate discoveries but to build workable development pathways that can support translation toward clinical applications. In practical terms, that typically means creating shared strategies, coordinated research plans, and collaborative workflows that help move candidates along the development pipeline, from target discovery and validation to preclinical proof-of-concept and other steps that de-risk eventual clinical testing. Because this is a U54 cooperative agreement, NIH involvement is generally more active than in standard investigator-initiated grants, with the expectation that NIH staff may help coordinate network activities, align milestones, and ensure that the overall program stays focused on translational outcomes that serve pediatric patients.

Eligibility is broad across the U.S. research ecosystem. Eligible applicants include various levels of government (state, county, city or township, and special districts), public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, independent school districts, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, and Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized. The opportunity also allows nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)), for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), and small businesses, plus other categories included by NIH. The FOA explicitly highlights additional eligible organization types such as 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), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions. At the same time, it clearly limits foreign participation: non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed, meaning a U.S.-based applicant can sometimes include certain foreign collaborations or activities if they meet NIH’s definition and policy requirements.

Administrative details included in the source information show the program sits within NIH’s health and education funding activity categories and is associated with CFDA numbers 93.395 and 93.396. The opportunity was created on September 26, 2017, and had an original closing date of December 19, 2017. The listed award ceiling is $1,600,000, and the mechanism is explicitly a cooperative agreement, which reinforces the expectation of structured collaboration and programmatic coordination. Overall, the grant is aimed at accelerating pediatric-focused immunotherapy translation by funding connected Centers that can jointly discover pediatric-relevant immune targets, design and optimize therapeutic approaches for children and adolescents, and clarify how pediatric tumors evade immune attack so that next-generation treatments can be designed more rationally and advanced more efficiently toward clinical impact.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pediatric Immunotherapy Translational Science Network (PI-TSN)(U54)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.395, 93.396.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-09-26.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-12-19. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,600,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA CA 17 050

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