Funding Opportunities

Grants for melanoma and skin cancer clinical research

Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials conducts investigator-initiated clinical trials and related research to improve how doctors prevent, diagnose and treat melanoma and skin cancer.

We have built an impressive reputation for delivering multicentre trials that improve melanoma and skin cancer outcomes across the world. Since 1999, we have delivered 29 clinical trials involving over 7,500 participants.

Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials facilitates the development of competitive investigator-initiated proposals through our concept development pathway. For more information on how we can help you develop a research proposal and secure funding, contact us.

Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund - GO8246

Open Date

17 February 2026

Closing Date

16 March 2026

Grant amount

Total amount: $3,000,000.00 AUD

Application website

Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund

About

Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund will direct additional investment to Australia’s Multi-site Collaborative Cancer Clinical Trials Groups (CTGs) under the Support for Cancer Clinical Trials (SCCT) program to build capacity and develop approaches or methods to set the foundation for, and accelerate the incorporation of genomics into the design of cancer clinical trial concepts and protocols to benefit all CTGs.

Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund should enable CTGs to build evidence for genomic-guided treatments, expand genomic datasets to more accurately reflect the diversity of the Australian population, and to strengthen equitable access to cancer clinical trials incorporating genomics. For example, the possible development of centralised data infrastructure under the Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund could be informed by collaboration among CTGs and experts in clinical implementation, both in its design and utility. The intent of any shared infrastructure would be to inform coordinated tumour-agnostic (or pan cancer) and multidisciplinary research and to streamline efforts across CTGs to generate efficiencies and avoid duplication.

Linkage Projects for funding applied for in 2026 - GO8179

Open Date

14 January 2026

Closing Date

18 March 2026

Grant amount

$1,500,000.00 AUD

Application website

Linkage Projects 2026

About

The Linkage Projects scheme supports projects which initiate or develop long term strategic research alliances to apply advanced knowledge to problems, acquire new knowledge and as a basis for securing commercial and other benefits of research.

There will be one assessment round for Linkage Projects for funding applied for in 2026. Please refer to the Important Dates document for detailed information about the assessment round dates.

The Linkage Projects scheme objectives are to:

support internationally competitive research projects and teams on challenges or opportunities of relevance to research end-users;
foster the establishment and strengthening of research alliances between higher education organisations and research end-users;
enhance the scale and focus of research, including in Australian Government priority areas.

The intended outcomes of the Linkage Projects scheme are:

new or strengthened collaborations and research alliances between universities and research end-users;
new knowledge that is of benefit to Australian research end-users, including in Australian Government priority areas; and
economic, commercial, environmental, social and/or cultural benefits for Australia.

MRFF 2022 Frontier Health and Medical Research Grant Opportunity – GO5855

Open Date

13 February 2023

Closing Date

31 March 2026

Grant amount

$25,000,000 AUD (Total amount: $400,000,000 AUD)

Application website

MRFF 2022 Frontier Health and Medical Research Grant Opportunity

About

This grant opportunity offers funding to support medical research and medical innovation programs of research that deliver a ‘moonshot’ by creating a treatment for a currently serious and incurable health condition, through a series of linked projects. The program of research can propose to develop novel health technologies and/or re-purpose existing health technologies in a novel way.

MRFF – CTA Initiative - 2025 Clinical Trials Activity Grant Opportunity - GO7923

Open Date

24 September 2025

Closing Date

1 April 2026

Grant amount

$5,000,000 AUD (Total amount: $61,000,000 AUD)

Application website

MRFF – CTA Initiative – 2025 Clinical Trials Activity Grant Opportunity

About

The Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Clinical Trials Activity Initiative aims to:

improve the evidence base supporting clinical care
help patients access trials relevant to their health circumstances
enable researchers to bring international trials to Australian patients.

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

Stream 1 (Incubator): conduct a pilot study to assess the feasibility of a new clinical trial for one or more treatments and/or management strategies for a rare cancer, rare disease and/or unmet need.
Stream 2 (Targeted Call for Research): conduct a clinical trial of one or more treatments and/or management-based interventions for rare cancers, rare diseases and/or unmet need.
Stream 3 (Targeted Call for Research): conduct a clinical trial that supports the delivery of effective and high value care by targeting evidence gaps of value to health technology assessment processes in Australia.
Stream 4 (Targeted Call for Research): conduct a prevention clinical trial aimed at reducing the risk, onset or progression of disease through early intervention strategies.

The intended outcome of the research is to improve the health and wellbeing of Australians by investing in new clinical trials that support increased access to high-quality, evidence-based and effective health care.

Applicants to this grant opportunity must propose research that addresses one of the four Streams of research.

This grant opportunity is being administered by NHMRC on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.

Further information on the Medical Research Future Fund is available fromthe Department of Health, Disability and Ageing’s website.

A list of Eligible Organisations can be found on the NHMRC List of MRFF Eligible Organisations webpage.

Other Instructions:

Minimum Data closes at 5:00pm (ACT Local Time) on 4 March 2026. Questions should be submitted no later than 1:00pm (ACT Local Time) on 25 March 2026.

2026 Synergy Grants - GO8224

Open Date

4 February 2026

Closing Date

1 April 2026

Grant amount

$5,000,000 AUD (Total amount: $55,000,000.00 AUD)

Application website

Synergy Grants

About

The objective of the Synergy Grant scheme is to:

• support outstanding multidisciplinary teams of investigators to work together to answer questions that cannot be answered by a single investigator.

The intended outcomes of the Synergy Grant scheme are:

• multidisciplinary research that addresses major problems in all areas of human health and medical research, from discovery to translation.

• highly collaborative teams of diverse researchers including by gender, career stage and cultural background, working together to address major problems in human health.

2026 Australian Melanoma Research Foundation (AMRF) Research Grants

Open Date

12 January 2026

Closing Date

30 April 2026 (EOI); 25 May 2026 (Full Application)

Grant amount

$20,000 AUD

Application website

2026 AMRF Research Grants

About

The aim of the AMRF’s grants scheme is to support high quality research that is not fully funded through other grant schemes or from other sources. AMRF funds are to be applied to offset the direct costs of the research.

The proposed research may be part of an existing research program. However, the application to the AMRF should be for a stand-alone component of that existing project.

AMRF will specifically focus on the support of the next generation of melanoma researchers in Australia by providing research grants to post-graduate students (up to $10,000) and early career researchers (up to $20,000).

2025 NHMRC-Horizon Europe - GO7886

Open Date

10 September 2025

Closing Date

29 April 2026 (Single stage deadline model); 25 Nov 2026 (Two-stage deadline model)

Grant amount

$1,000,000.00 AUD (Total Amount $4,000,000.00 AUD)

Application website

2025 NHMRC-Horizon Europe

About

The 2025 NHMRC-Horizon Europe grant opportunity supports Australian participation in international collaborative research under Horizon Europe. Horizon Europe facilitates collaboration and strengthens research impact and innovation while tackling global challenges.

NHMRC will invite Australia-based researchers who are listed on eligible applications deemed fundable by the European Commission (EC) to apply to NHMRC for support of the Australian component of research under the following topics submitted under the Horizon Europe topics listed in section 2.4 of the 2025 NHMRC-Horizon Europe Guidelines.

Ideas Grants 2026 - GO8295

Open Date

11 March 2026

Closing Date

8 April 2026 (Minimum Data); 6 May 2026 (Full Application)

Grant amount

Total Amount $297,100,000.00 AUD

Application website

Ideas Grants 2026

About

The objective of the Ideas Grant scheme is to support innovative research projects addressing a specific question(s).

The expected outcomes are:

innovative and creative research
funding of researchers at all career stages
funding any area of health and medical research from discovery to implementation.

It is expected that the Chief Investigator A (CIA) will have the capability to lead the team in achieving the project aims.

The Ideas Grant scheme is not intended to support research where a clinical trial or cohort study is the primary objective. Applicants conducting projects which incorporate elements of clinical trial and/or cohort study must consider whether the project goals are more applicable to the Ideas Grant or Clinical Trials and Cohort Grant schemes.

2026 Australian Cancer Research Foundation (ACRF) Annual Research Grant

Open Date

9 March 2026

Closing Date

22 May 2026

Grant amount

Total Amount $5,000,000.00 AUD

Application website

Australian Cancer Research Foundation

About

ACRF awards capital grants (between $1.5 to $5 million) for technology, equipment and infrastructure for cancer research at Australian medical research institutes, hospitals and universities.

Grant applications are open to research into all types of cancer with a research focus on detection, prevention, and/or treatment.

ACRF promotes collaboration amongst researchers and clinicians and encourages novel and innovative cancer research projects. All applications are competitively reviewed by the ACRF Medical Research Advisory Committee (MRAC) who recommend the best projects to the ACRF Board of Trustees for funding.

Grants-in-Aid

Open Date

20 April 2026

Closing Date

EOI Due: 19 May 2026; Full Application Due: 1 September 2026

Grant amount

TBC

Application website

Cancer Council Victoria

About

Grants-in-Aid funds high quality research focused on discovering and improving prevention, detection, treatment, and care for people affected by cancer.

We are committed to funding research projects tackling all cancer types to achieve our vision for a cancer-free future.

MRFF 2026 National Critical Research Infrastructure - GO7982

Open Date

18 February 2026

Closing Date

14 July 2026

Grant amount

Total amount $85,000,000.00 AUD

Application website

National Critical Research Infrastructure

About

The 2026 National Critical Research Infrastructure initiative invests in research infrastructure to ensure Australian researchers find innovative solutions to complex health problems in areas of unmet medical need. This grant opportunity has four streams.

Stream 1 – Innovation enablers

Address an area of unmet medical need by promoting the development and implementation of new research infrastructure by supporting development and/or expansion of research enablers such as biobanks, tissue repositories, novel platforms, and secure health data environments to create valuable research resources.

Stream 2 – Digitisation of health care

Translate or implement innovative artificial intelligence technologies into health applications that:

benefit multiple health disciplines/areas
involve consumers in the research journey to ensure the research is applicable to the needs of the Australian community; and
increase artificial intelligence workforce capacity and capability, particularly in relation to health, through cross-sector and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Stream 3 – Co-investment partnerships

Utilise co-investment (cash only) with the research sector, state and/or territory governments, and industry, in significant critical research infrastructure (e.g. facilities, personnel and equipment):

to support development of research capacity, capability and/or effectiveness in an area of unmet medical need, or
to enable Australian research using new platforms, systems and services in an area of unmet medical need.

Stream 4 – mRNA technology enablers

Leverage and enhance emerging mRNA technologies, platforms, and/or equipment to accelerate development of mRNA-based vaccines and therapeutics in an area of unmet medical need.

An application may only be submitted to one of the above four streams. Applicants must specify the stream to which they are applying in their application.

MRFF 2026 Consumer-Led Research Grant Opportunity - GO8270

Open Date

4 March 2026

Closing Date

5 August 2026

Grant amount

$2,500,000.00 AUD (Total amount $20,000,000.00 AUD)

Application website

2026 Consumer-Led Research Grant

About

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

Stream 1 (Incubator): identify health priorities, develop new approaches and/or methodologies and conduct pilot studies addressing health issues and/or barriers that:

are co-led, co-produced and/or co-designed with consumers
are in partnership with health services
increase consumers’ understanding of, and involvement in, research.

Stream 2 (Targeted Call for Research): develop and/or test scalable and sustainable approaches, in partnership with consumers, that enable self-care interventions or improve quality of life and/or survivorship care.

Approaches are for individuals from one or more priority populations, who have experienced or are experiencing long-term diseases and conditions. Approaches may, where appropriate, also deliver for the individual’s families, carers and communities.

Topic A: Research projects that focus on cancer
Topic B: Research projects that focus on long term physical diseases and conditions other than cancer
Topic C: Research projects that focus on mental health challenges, diseases or conditions.

MRFF – 2026 International Clinical Trial Collaborations Grant Opportunity - GO8232

Open Date

11 February 2026

Closing Date

16 September 2026

Grant amount

$3,000,000.00 AUD (Total Amount $13,000,000.00 AUD)

Application website

2026 International Clinical Trial Collaborations Grant

About

The Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Clinical Trials Activity Initiative (the Initiative) aims to increase clinical trial activity in Australia in order to improve the evidence base supporting clinical care and to help patients access trials relevant to their health circumstances and enable researchers to bring international trials to Australian patients.

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

Promote Australian involvement in international collaborative investigator-initiated clinical trials research through the establishment and co-ordination of clinical trial site/s in Australia.
Provide high-quality evidence of the effectiveness of novel health treatments, drugs or devices in ‘usual care’ settings, which will support a decision on whether to deliver the intervention in an Australian setting.

Applicants to this grant opportunity must propose a clinical trial in Australia in collaboration with international counterparts. The clinical trial should not have commenced recruitment at the Australian trial site/s.

Clinical Trials and Cohort Studies Grants

Open Date

9 September 2026

Closing Date

4 November 2026

Grant amount

TBC

Application website

Clinical Trials and Cohort Studies Grants

About

This funding scheme is open to research proposals for clinical trials and/or cohort studies of any size – that is, they may be large or small clinical trials or cohort studies.

The intended outcomes of the Clinical Trials and Cohort Studies Grants scheme are improvements in health and well-being, health care practice or policy, as a result of:

High-quality clinical trials that provide reliable evidence of the effects of health-related interventions on health outcomes (or appropriate surrogates).
High-quality cohort studies that provide reliable evidence on the relation of important risk factors and other exposures to health-related outcomes.
High quality retrospective cohort studies that provide reliable evidence on the relation of important risk factors and other exposures to health-related outcomes.

Partnership Projects 2026 - GO8163

Open Date

7 January 2026

Closing Date

11 November 2026

Grant amount

$1,500,000.00 AUD (Total Amount $35,300,000.00 AUD)

Application website

Partnership Projects 2026

About

Partnership Projects will support collaborations, within the Australian context, that translate research evidence into health policy and health practice, to improve health services and processes.

The objectives of the Partnership Project scheme are to:

• Meet the need for more effective integration of research evidence into health policy and service delivery

• Create partnerships among policy makers, managers, service providers and researchers

• Provide support to answer often complex and difficult questions that policy makers, managers and service providers face when making decisions and implementing policies that affect Australians’ health and health care

• Be highly responsive to the priorities of government, the community and health professionals

• Enable applicants to apply for funding at any time during the year to allow researchers and Partner Organisations to develop timely collaborations.

International Grant Opportunities:

Cancer Prevention and Control Clinical Trials Grant Program (R01 Clinical Trial Required) - PAR-25-167

Open Date

05 January 2025

Closing Date

5 February 2026, 5 June 2026 and 5 October 2026

Grant amount

Application budgets are not limited but need to reflect the actual needs of the proposed project.

Application website

Cancer Prevention and Control Clinical Trials Grant Program

About

This notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) invites applications of investigator-initiated clinical trials (Phase 0-IV) that have the potential to reduce the burden of cancer through improvements in early detection, screening, prevention and interception, healthcare delivery, quality of life, and/or survivorship related to cancer; with such attributes, the proposed studies should also have the potential to improve clinical practice and/or public health. This NOFO does not and will not support clinical trials for studies of cancer diagnosis and/or oncologic therapy in patients.

Examples of relevant areas of research include but are not limited to:

Cancer prevention and interception: development and testing of interventions (including diet, nutritional compounds, drugs, small molecules, vaccine and biologics) and approaches (including physical activity, medical devices, cancer preventive surgery, risk-reducing surgery, and non-surgical ablative techniques) to block, reverse, or delay the early stages of cancer (including treatment of preneoplastic lesions and presurgical trials in early stage cancer with the intent of developing an agent/intervention for cancer prevention). This also includes studies examining mechanism and surrogate biomarkers of efficacy;
Cancer screening: studies of operating characteristics and clinical impact (harms as well as benefits) of cancer early detection technologies and practices, such as imaging and molecular biomarker approaches;
Early detection: studies for identification, development, and validation of biological markers for early cancer detection and cancer risk assessment;
Behavioral research in cancer prevention and control: development and testing of interventions addressing risk behaviors such as: tobacco use, energy balance, alcohol use, or sun exposure; vaccine uptake; immune function; screening behavior; treatment adherence; biopsychosocial processes of cancer-related behavior; communication, decision science, environmental modifications and policy changes aimed at altering cancer-related health behaviors and/or preventing or improving cancer-related risks and outcomes;
Susceptibility to cancer and cancer-related outcomes: strategies to translate clinical, environmental and genomic/genetic determinants of cancer occurrence and outcomes into evidence-based interventions for clinical and public health practice;
Implementation science: strategies to promote the adoption, implementation, and sustainability of evidence-based intervention into routine healthcare and public health settings or the deimplementation of ineffective interventions;
Healthcare delivery: single and multi-level interventions addressing the organization and/or delivery of cancer care (e.g., team-based care; novel use of electronic health records; new organizational mechanisms/staffing such as patient navigation; new models of specialized services such as palliative care or survivorship programs);
Cancer survivorship: interventions addressing the physical, psychological, social, and financial burden of cancer and its treatment among survivors of cancer and their families (e.g., mental health, social functioning, caregiver well-being and adaptation);
Supportive and palliative care: development and testing of interventions (including diet, nutritional compounds, drugs, small molecules, vaccine and biologics) and approaches for the prevention or treatment of acute and chronic symptoms and morbidities related to cancer and its treatment including those experienced by patients with metastatic cancer; and/or
Quality of Life (QOL): studies to improve the QOL of patients.

Foreign Organizations

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) are eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

National Cancer Institute's Investigator-Initiated Early Phase Clinical Trials for Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis (R01 Clinical Trial Required) - PAR-25-081

Open Date

05 January 2025

Closing Date

5 February 2026, 5 June 2026 and 5 October 2026

Grant amount

The total direct costs available is up to: $2,499,995 USD

Application website

National Cancer Institute

About

This notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) is applicable to a broad range of early phase (Phase 0, I, and II) investigator-initiated clinical trial evaluations that improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer in areas of common and unmet need. Potential areas of research may include, but are not limited to, the clinical evaluation of new or improved anticancer drugs and biologics, including immunotherapies, new or improved imaging technologies and surgical interventions, novel approaches to radiation therapy, and incorporation of complementary and alternative medicine approaches to treatment. The research component may include the development of therapeutics, diagnostics, and devices in combination with standard care therapies including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, surgery, radiotherapy, or any combination of these modalities. Additional research aims can be proposed as part of the overall research plan provided it includes at least 1 clinical trial to be completed within the project period.

Note that Phase III clinical trials will not be accepted through this NOFO.

Description of the type of clinical trials that can be supported include:

Single-site clinical trial(s): Early phase trials where the protocol is implemented by one investigational site that conducts and coordinates the protocol. While a single-site clinical trial may enroll participants from multiple locations/clinics within a geographic area, those participants will receive an intervention or undergo outcome assessments under the direction and oversight of one research team at one investigational site.
Multi-site clinical trial(s): Early phase trials that recruit study subjects from two or more geographically distinct enrollment sites, or centers. The sites are usually distinct in other characteristics (e.g., demographic, socioeconomic, or clinical). Study protocols are followed at these sites.
Mechanistic clinical trial(s): Hypothesis-driven interventional studies (i.e., early phase trials) focused on basic and/or translational, discovery research on the biology and pathophysiology of cancer or the mechanism of action of an intervention.
Feasibility clinical trial(s): Early phase trials that propose to break new ground and/or extend previous discoveries toward new directions and/or applications.
Pragmatic trial(s): Early phase trials that test an intervention under the usual clinical conditions in which it will be applied, while explanatory trials do so under more idealized circumstances.
Ancillary clinical trial(s): Early phase trials that address research questions related to ongoing trials but are distinct from the primary/secondary objectives of the parent study. An ancillary clinical trial is an independent trial that includes an additional intervention prospectively assigned to patients or a subpopulation of patients within a larger trial. For helpful examples, see case studies 42b and 42c.
Pharmacodynamic trial(s): Early phase trials that link outcomes to measurements on pre- and post-treatment specimens to test hypotheses about therapeutic mechanisms based on pre-clinical data.
Biomarker-driven trial(s): Early phase trials that test predictive or prognostic biomarker findings obtained from pilot trials.
Co-clinical trial(s): Early phase trials that involve patients and in parallel (or sequentially) animal or human-in-animal models of cancer that mirror the genetics and biology of the patients’ malignancies or pre-cancerous lesions. The co-clinical trial should include either a therapeutic goal (e.g., the prediction, staging, and/or measurement of tumor response to therapies) or an early diagnostic goal.

Foreign Organizations

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) are eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

Clinical Studies of Orphan Products Addressing Unmet Needs of Rare Diseases (R01 Clinical Trials Required) - RFA-FD-25-020

Open Date

22 August 2025

Closing Date

20 October 2026 and 19 October 2027

Grant amount

The total funds available is up to: $2,600,000 USD

Application website

Clinical Studies of Orphan Products Addressing Unmet Needs of Rare Diseases

About

This grant is intended to support clinical trials of orphan products in all phases of product development (phase 1, 2 and/or 3) for rare diseases with unmet medical needs. These clinical trials should evaluate safety and/or efficacy of medical products in support of a new indication or a change in labeling. Depending on the phase of development, these trials may need to include an appropriate comparator, such as a placebo, a concurrent external control, or a historical control. Applicants are encouraged to refer to “Rare Diseases: Considerations for the Development of Drugs and Biological Products” for guidance on conducting more efficient and successful drug development programs. Applicants are also encouraged to refer to Guidance Documents for Rare Disease Drug Development for selected guidances relevant to rare disease drug development and information on the Orphan Products Grants Program website before applying for this opportunity.

To facilitate efficient product development, the use of shared, established infrastructure and resources and collaborative efforts between stakeholders in industry, academia, and patient organizations are highly encouraged under this grant. Additionally, patients living with a rare disease, or their caregivers have experiences and knowledge that contribute to important considerations in product development, such as with trial feasibility, thus early and ongoing patient engagement is also highly encouraged.

Innovative and Efficient Trial Approaches:
FDA is interested in supporting innovative and efficient trial designs and will allow for additional funding with justification for applications proposing the use of one or more of the following:

Innovative trial designs such as seamless and adaptive trial designs, which compress the phases of a trial into one continuous trial, as well as basket, umbrella and platform trials, which allow for testing of multiple drugs and/or multiple diseases using a common infrastructure.
Innovative methods using data simulations and modeling toward the study of safety and efficacy of a product.

These approaches may hold significant promise for the advancement of therapeutic treatments for rare diseases through all phases of product development. Early engagement with FDA review divisions to discuss the use of these innovative approaches is highly recommended prior to submitting a grant application (e.g., preIND, INTERACT, other meetings).

Foreign Organizations

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) are eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.