Israel Cancer Research Fund Inc

Israel Cancer Research Fund Inc

Quick Stats

• Annual Giving: Most recent filed accounts show total expenditure of $7,728,171
• Grant Range: $135,000 to $500,000 per award, distributed over 3 to 5 years
• Geographic Focus: Israel only (research must be conducted in Israel; exceptions only for clearly identified international collaborative grants)
• Application Method: Annual deadline in January

Contact Details

• Address: 52 Vanderbilt Avenue, Suite 1410, New York, NY 10017-3835
• Phone: 212-969-9800 or toll-free 888-654-4273
• Email: info@icrfonline.org
• Website: https://www.icrfonline.org

Overview

Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) was founded in 1975 by Dr Daniel G. Miller and a group of American and Canadian physicians, scientists and philanthropists to prevent the permanent loss of Israel's cancer researchers to foreign universities due to lack of domestic funding.

The organisation supports basic, translational and clinical cancer research conducted in Israel. ICRF is the largest non-governmental source of cancer research funding in Israel, having awarded more than $100 million in funding for nearly 3,000 grants. ICRF-funded scientists have been instrumental in the development of breakthrough FDA-approved drugs including Gleevec, Doxil and Velcade.

All grants are awarded through a rigorous peer-review process modelled after the U.S. National Institutes of Health, conducted by an expert panel of more than 40 prominent U.S. and Canadian scientists and oncologists who collectively donate 2,000 hours annually to reviewing applications.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programmes

• Research Professorship Grants: $500,000 over five years (maximum $100,000 per year) for full-time senior scientists with established laboratories who have made and will continue to make outstanding contributions to cancer research. Applicants must hold the rank of Full Professor or equivalent and must have carried out research for at least eight years since receiving the PhD, MD, or MD/PhD degree.

• Project Grants: $180,000 over three years (maximum $60,000 per year) for established investigators working on a specific cancer research project. The applicant must be an independent investigator who has demonstrated ability to lead a research team.

• Career Development Awards (CDAs): $135,000 over three years (maximum $45,000 per year) for promising investigators who have recently established their own laboratories. Candidates must have a PhD, MD, or MD/PhD degree and at least three years of postdoctoral fellowship or equivalent experience, hold an independent junior position at an Israeli institution, and be within five years of initial appointment to that position at the start date of requested funding.

What They Fund

All cancer research conducted in Israel, including basic, translational and clinical cancer research. Research must be conducted in Israel except in the case of clearly identified international collaborative grants.

Application Process

How to Apply

Applications become available in autumn, with submission deadlines in January.

Applicants are required to submit a comprehensive description of their proposed research project along with the curriculum vitae of the investigators, similar to the application process used by the NIH.

Applications are independently reviewed by the Scientific Review Panel, which meets annually in March to discuss the proposals. Three concurrent panels evaluate applications in three different categories: clinical applications, basic research applications, and applications for high-level grants and special initiatives. Each panel has a chairperson and 15 to 25 scientists.

Final allocation decisions rest with ICRF's International Board of Trustees, which evaluates detailed recommendations from the Scientific Review Panel.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be citizens of Israel (proof of Israeli citizenship must be furnished upon request)
• Must hold an independent position at an Israeli research institution
• All research must be conducted in Israel except in the case of clearly identified international collaborative grants
• Organisation must have 501(c)(3) status or Israeli equivalent for institutional eligibility

Key Takeaways

• ICRF exclusively funds cancer research conducted in Israel by Israeli citizen researchers, distinguishing it from broader biomedical research funders
• The organisation uses a rigorous NIH-modelled peer-review process with prominent North American scientists serving as reviewers
• Eligibility is restricted to Israeli citizens conducting research at Israeli institutions, with limited exceptions for international collaborations
• Annual application cycle with January deadline; applications become available in autumn
• Awards range from early-career development grants to substantial five-year professorships for established researchers

References

• ICRF website: https://www.icrfonline.org
• Research grant programmes: https://www.icrfonline.org/research-grant-programs/
• Scientific review process: https://www.icrfonline.org/scientific-review-process/
• IRS filings (EIN 51-0181215): ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer