Funding Opportunities
Research Areas of Interest
NETRF offers four different neuroendocrine cancer research grants (Accelerator, Investigator, Pilot, and Mentored Awards) with grants ranging from $100,000 to $800,000.
NETRF’s research strategy is guided by a clear, focused Research Roadmap built around three integrated pillars:
- Early Detection supports work that identifies neuroendocrine cancer sooner, when the disease is morelocalized and treatment options are more effective. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, biomarker and assay development, imaging, radiomics and functional approaches, and risk prediction or clinical decision-support models.
- New Therapeutic Development supports the discovery and advancement of innovative treatment approaches, including targeted therapies, immunotherapies, and novel modalities.
- Precision Medicine supports approaches that match the right therapy to the right patient at the right time, based on tumor biology, biomarkers, and individual disease characteristics.
These pillars are designed to work together as a coordinated system to change the trajectory of neuroendocrine cancer, from earlier diagnosis to better treatments to care tailored for each individual patient.
NETRF welcomes strong science across the full spectrum of neuroendocrine cancer research, provided the proposed work advances at least one pillar of the Research Roadmap.
The Roadmap pillars above define NETRF’s strategic framework. The topics below are provided as illustrative examples of promising opportunities and do not constitute a separate set of required categories. Proposals may address these or other topics, as long as they align with at least one Roadmap pillar. These examples are not exclusive nor are they in order of preference.
- Uncovering the molecular and genetic basis of neuroendocrine cancer
- New/optimized experimental models
- Application of existing or new technologies to target neuroendocrine cancer
- Cancer metabolism
- Cell invasion and metastasis
- Tumor microenvironment.
- Immunotherapy.
- Diagnostics/Biomarkers
- Big data
- Clinical research
Tumor Types In Scope
NETRF funds research on neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) across sites and stages, including well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors (G1–G3) and poorly differentiated extrapulmonary neuroendocrine carcinoma (epNEC), encompassing unknown primary, metastatic disease, and hereditary contexts (e.g., MEN1, VHL, NF1, SDHx) when NEN biology is central. MiNEN are eligible when the neuroendocrine component is biologically or clinically driving, but neuroendocrine features within other primary cancer types are out of scope for funding.
Eligible NEN types and clinical contexts supported by NETRF include:
- GEP-NET (small intestine, pancreas, appendix, colon, duodenum, rectum, stomach, hepatobiliary)
- Lung NET (typical/atypical carcinoid), DIPNECH
- Thymic NET
- Pheochromocytoma/Paraganglioma
- Pituitary NET (PitNET)
- NENs within hereditary syndromes (e.g., MEN1, VHL, NF1, SDHx)
- MiNEN
- Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC)
- Extrapulmonary NEC (e.g., GI, pancreatic, esophageal, genitourinary, Merkel cell carcinoma)
The Foundation may consider supporting work on other NEN types, subject to available funding, provided they are not specifically listed as out of scope.
Tumor Types Out of Scope
Out-of-scope tumors include small cell lung cancer (SCLC), pulmonary large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC), treatment-emergent neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC) and other prostate NEC variants, neuroblastoma, adrenocortical carcinoma, and non-neuroendocrine carcinomas, including lung adenocarcinoma/squamous, mesothelioma, poorly differentiated non-NE NSCLC, thymic carcinoma, acinar cell carcinoma, and appendiceal carcinomas.
Seeking transformational ideas
We invite innovative and transformative research proposals in neuroendocrine cancer to help bring the field closer to more effective therapies. We fund basic, translational, and clinical research and encourage collaborations between investigators with expertise in different fields. Prior research experience in neuroendocrine cancer is not required, and we encourage scientists to enter the field.
Encouraging team science
We are very interested in grant proposals from multidisciplinary groups comprising basic scientists, clinicians, and experts across relevant, cutting-edge disciplines. Proposals that cover promising and potentially transferable strategies and/or technologies that have been applied successfully to other areas of cancer research are highly encouraged and will be evaluated based on their level of applicability to neuroendocrine cancer.