DoD Breast Cancer Breakthrough Award Level 3 | HT942525BCRPBTA3

Opportunity Information: Apply for HT942525BCRPBTA3

The DoD Breast Cancer Breakthrough Award Level 3 (Funding Opportunity Number HT942525BCRPBTA3) is a discretionary federal grant offered through the Department of the Army, U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA), under CFDA 12.420 (Science and Technology and other Research and Development). The goal of this award is to support promising, high-impact breast cancer research that has strong potential to produce true breakthroughs, meaning outcomes that could substantially shift understanding, prevention, detection, or treatment and ultimately move toward clinical application. This Level 3 announcement is part of the FY25 Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP) Breakthrough Award mechanism, which is structured into three funding levels, each aimed at supporting different stages along the path to clinical translation. Level 3 specifically targets work positioned to make a major leap forward rather than incremental progress.

A central requirement is alignment with the FY25 BCRP overarching challenges. Every application is expected to address at least one of these challenges unless the applicant provides a clear and convincing justification for why an exception should be made. Importantly, it is not enough to simply name a challenge; the proposed work must engage the challenge in a way that could plausibly lead to or directly enable a breakthrough and produce major impact in the breast cancer field. In practice, this means the proposal should make a compelling case that the research strategy, milestones, and expected outcomes are ambitious, feasible, and positioned to move the field forward in a meaningful way.

This Level 3 opportunity allows, but does not require, small-scale clinical trials. Applicants who want to include a clinical trial component can do so, but they must select and submit under the Clinical Trial option when applicable, signaling that the program has a dedicated track and expectations for projects that include interventional human research. For teams not ready to run a trial, the mechanism still supports advanced translational efforts that can credibly set the stage for near-term clinical application.

The program also places strong emphasis on patient-centered relevance and accountability by requiring the research team to include at least two breast cancer consumer advocates. These are typically individuals with lived experience and/or deep community engagement who contribute perspectives on patient priorities, feasibility, burden, access, and real-world impact. Their inclusion is a formal requirement, not a suggestion, and applicants should expect to integrate advocates in meaningful roles (for example, shaping aims, informing endpoints that matter to patients, reviewing materials for clarity, advising on recruitment/retention considerations if human subjects are involved, and helping interpret dissemination plans).

From a leadership and collaboration standpoint, applicants can apply with either a single Principal Investigator (PI) or a Partnering PI Option (PPIO) structure with two PIs: an Initiating PI and a Partnering PI. Under the partnering model, only the Initiating PI submits the pre-application, but at the full application stage both the initiating and partnering submissions must be completed. The announcement notes that applications may be withdrawn if both pieces are not submitted by the full application deadline, or if either the initiating or partnering application is administratively withdrawn, so coordination and compliance between the two PI submissions is essential.

Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning a broad range of applicant types can apply as long as they meet the standard federal and program requirements. The agency anticipates making about three awards under this opportunity. The original closing date for applications is September 10, 2025. The award ceiling is not specified in the provided source text, so prospective applicants would need to consult the full funding announcement or related program documents for the maximum allowable budget, period of performance details, cost rules, and any level-specific funding limits that typically distinguish Breakthrough Award Levels 1, 2, and 3.

Overall, this opportunity is designed for well-justified, milestone-driven projects with a strong rationale for how the work could produce a significant advance in breast cancer, backed by an appropriately assembled team that includes consumer advocates and, where relevant, the infrastructure and planning needed to responsibly conduct small-scale clinical trials.

• The Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DoD Breast Cancer Breakthrough Award Level 3" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-04-22.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-09-10. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 3 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

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