Fundamental Mechanisms of Affective and Decisional Processes in Cancer Control (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 20 034

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 20 034

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity PAR-20-034, titled Fundamental Mechanisms of Affective and Decisional Processes in Cancer Control (R01 Clinical Trial Optional), supports research that digs into the basic, underlying mechanisms of emotion (affect) and how those emotional processes shape decision-making and behavior in cancer prevention and cancer control. The central idea is to move beyond simply describing that emotions matter and instead produce fundamental, generalizable knowledge about how affect works, how it interacts with cognition and context, and how it ultimately influences real-world cancer-related choices and actions.

A key emphasis of the announcement is that affective science should connect clearly to decisions and behaviors across the cancer prevention and control continuum. That includes both single-event decisions, such as whether someone gets a recommended cancer screening, as well as repeated or multi-event behaviors that unfold over time, such as sticking with a long-term medication plan or maintaining adherence to an oral chemotherapy regimen. In practice, the projects this FOA seeks are those that can explain why people make certain cancer-related choices under emotional influence, what emotional processes are driving those choices, and how those processes might vary across situations, populations, and stages of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, or end-of-life care.

The FOA also signals a strong interest in cross-disciplinary collaboration, specifically encouraging teams that connect cancer control researchers with experts from fields not always tied directly to cancer applications. Examples named in the opportunity include affective and cognitive neuroscience, decision science, and consumer science. The motivation is to bring rigorous theories, methods, and measurement approaches from these fields to tackle problems that are considered puzzling or understudied in affective and decision sciences, while keeping a clear line of sight to downstream implications for cancer prevention and control. In other words, the work should be foundational in what it discovers about affect and decisions, but also positioned so that what is learned can later inform intervention development, communication strategies, behavioral support tools, or policy-relevant approaches in cancer control.

Mechanistically oriented studies are a natural fit under this announcement, especially those that clarify how emotions such as fear, worry, anxiety, regret, hope, shame, or anticipated emotions shape risk perception, information processing, preferences, and follow-through behaviors. The FOA is designed for projects that can help explain phenomena like avoidance of screening due to fear, inconsistent adherence when treatment decisions are emotionally taxing, difficulty acting on preventive guidance when people feel overwhelmed, or changes in decision quality under stress. While the opportunity is not limited to any single method, the framing favors careful theory-driven work that can isolate processes, test competing explanations, and produce knowledge that transfers across different cancer-related contexts.

This is an R01 grant mechanism, which generally supports substantial, multi-year research projects. The listing specifies that a clinical trial is optional, meaning applicants may propose studies that include a clinical trial component if appropriate, but they are not required to do so. Many projects may be observational, experimental, or laboratory- and field-based studies focused on mechanisms of affect and decision-making, while others may test interventions if they meet the NIH definition of a clinical trial and align with the FOA’s objectives.

Eligibility is broad. In addition to typical eligible organizations such as public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (including entities other than small businesses), and small businesses, the FOA includes a wide range of governmental and community-based applicants. These include state, county, city or township, and special district governments; independent school districts; Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and other tribal organizations; and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities. The announcement explicitly highlights additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). That breadth reflects an interest in expanding who conducts affective and decision science in cancer control and encouraging research that can be sensitive to diverse populations and contexts.

Administratively, this is a discretionary NIH grant opportunity in the health domain (CFDA 93.393). The FOA was created on 2019-10-18, and the source data lists an original closing date of 2023-01-07. Award ceiling and expected awards are not specified in the provided source information, so applicants would normally rely on the full FOA text and NIH Institute/Center guidance for budget expectations, paylines, and submission cycles.

Overall, this opportunity is aimed at researchers who can produce strong basic-science insights about emotion and decision-making while keeping those insights anchored to consequential cancer-related behaviors. The strongest fit is work that explains mechanisms in a way that can ultimately help improve prevention uptake, treatment adherence, patient decision quality, risk communication, and other behavioral outcomes that shape cancer burden and equity.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Fundamental Mechanisms of Affective and Decisional Processes in Cancer Control (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.393.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-10-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-01-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 20 034

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: