Data / Federal grants / PAR-26-152
Precision Approaches in Radiation Synthetic Combinations (PAIRS, RP1 Clinical Trial Optional)
National Institutes of Health (Department of Health and Human Services) expects to post this opportunity around June 1, 2026, with applications due around November 11, 2026.
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Key facts
- Opportunity number
- PAR-26-152
- Status
- Forecast
- Posted
- March 3, 2026
- Closes
- November 11, 2026
- Cost sharing
- Not required
- Funding instrument
- Grant
- Category
- Health
- Assistance listing
- 93.395 Cancer Treatment Research
- Contact
- NCI PAIRS Program · Email: [email protected] · Telephone: 240-276-5703
Who can apply
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
- Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
- Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
- Private institutions of higher education
- State governments
- Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
- Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
- County governments
- Independent school districts
- Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
- Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Special district governments
- City or township governments
- Small businesses
Other Eligible ApplicantsIndian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized);Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government;U.S. Territory or Possession;Faith-based or Community-based Organizations;Regional Organizations;Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions).
What the agency says
Through this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), the National Cancer Institute (NCI) solicits research projects that investigate actionable synthetic vulnerabilities that can be conditionally paired with tumor responses to radiation therapy. The goal of the Precision Approaches in Radiation Synthetic Combinations ( PAIRS) program is to develop radiation-synthetic combination strategies and facilitate their adoption into the precision medicine toolkit toward building new and effective anticancer treatments. Early synthetic lethality–based therapeutic strategies in oncology primarily focused on targeting fixed mutations or genomic abnormalities. More recently, however, it has become clear that clinical benefit is often determined by context-dependent vulnerabilities arising from the intrinsic mutational landscape and adaptive tumor responses. This NOFO is unique in its scope, supporting innovative cancer therapy strategies that explicitly exploit context-dependent effects of radiation therapy (RT) using drug-radiation combinations. The central premise of the PAIRS is that these conditional RT-induced responses can be leveraged to create or enhance actionable vulnerabilities that synergize with molecularly targeted agents for better outcomes. A defining feature of PAIRS is its emphasis on precision, scientific rigor, and reproducibility, aligned with NIH’s scientific priorities. Radiation effects are clinically titratable through advances in delivery accuracy and flexibility, including dose, schedule, and spatial targeting. These capabilities enable the rational design of conditional RT-synthetic combination strategies that preferentially exploit tumor-specific essentialities while sparing normal tissues, thereby enhancing the therapeutic index by optimizing biological response. This NOFO consolidates the prior exploratory/developmental and research project funding opportunities to streamline the application process and maintain momentum in developing approaches that target actionable vulnerabilities within the defined radiation research scope. The applicants may submit either for exploratory/developmental research projects with a project period of up to 2 years or for research projects with a project period of 4 to 5 years.
Other open grants from the Department of Health and Human Services
| Opportunity | Status | Closes | Award ceiling | Total funding | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long-term health outcomes of people living with spina bifida CDC-RFA-DD-26-0222 | Open | Oct 26 | $300,000 | $3,000,000 | grants.gov |
| GREGoRi Data Coordination and Outreach Center (U01, Clinical Trials Not Allowed) RFA-HG-27-011 | Open | Oct 30 | $1,250,000 | $2,000,000 | grants.gov |
| GREGoRi Innovation Projects (U01 Clinical Trial Optional) RFA-HG-27-013 | Open | Oct 30 | $500,000 | $7,500,000 | grants.gov |
| GREGoRi Technology Integration Center (U01, Clinical Trials Optional) RFA-HG-27-012 | Open | Oct 30 | $2,250,000 | $3,000,000 | grants.gov |
| HEAL Initiative: Whole Joint Health Program (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Required) PAR-27-045 | Open | Oct 30 | grants.gov | ||
| Clinical Observational (CO) Studies in Musculoskeletal, Rheumatic, and Skin Diseases (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) PAR-24-280 | Open | Nov 2 | grants.gov |
All grants open to Nonprofits (501(c)(3)) · All grants open to For profit organizations other than small businesses · All grants open to Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities · Everything closing in November 2026
Read from the Grants.gov API, last updated 2026-10-23. The agency's notice on Grants.gov is the official record; check it before you apply.