Limited Submission Opportunity: 2026 Mary Kay Ash Foundation Innovative/Translational Cancer Research Grant

Vanderbilt (VU + VUMC): This is a combined competition for VU and VUMC investigators. All investigators should follow these instructions.

Applications due Dec. 4, 2025

Vanderbilt (VU + VUMC, collaboratively) may nominate one candidate for the Mary Kay Foundation Innovative/Translational Cancer Research Grant program for 2026.

Overview

These awards provide $100,000 over two years to support innovative translational research for cancers predominantly affecting women, including but not limited to breast, cervical, endometrial, ovarian, and uterine cancers.

The Foundation seeks to fund innovative research that bridges laboratory discoveries and clinical application. Ultimately, such research would lead to improvement in the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, or treatment of cancer.

You can find a list of the previous award recipients here. Review additional guidelines in the RFP.

Eligibility

• Principal Investigator must be Full-time Assistant Professor or higher (Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor) and commit a minimum 5% effort.
• Staff scientists, postdoctoral trainees and instructors are NOT eligible.
• Up to one co-PI is permitted. Co-PI must meet the same eligibility requirements as PI (Assistant Professor or higher).
• Post-doc contributors may be listed as co-investigator, but not co-PI.
• The maximum total budget is $100,000. Indirect costs may not exceed 15% of direct costs (E.g., Direct costs ≤ $86,956, Indirect costs ≤ $13,044.)
• U.S. citizenship is not required.

Internal Application Process

Anyone interested in being considered as Vanderbilt's nominee must submit the following to [email protected] by 5 p.m. on Dec. 4. Please combine your materials into a single PDF and reference the program name in the subject line of the email.

1. Brief research plan including summary budget (two-page max);
2. Statement of support from department chair/center director;
3. NIH Biosketch or brief CV (five-page max)

The chosen nominee will submit a full proposal to the Foundation by the deadline of Feb. 1, 2026. Direct all questions about this opportunity to [email protected].