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  5. 2027 Canadian Cancer Trials Group

Major Program 2027 - Canadian Cancer Trials Group

  1. Home
  2. Research
  3. For researchers
  4. Current funding opportunities
  5. 2027 Canadian Cancer Trials Group

Highlights of the program

Clinical trials are a critical part of cancer research and the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) has a long history of investing in the cancer clinical trials ecosystem. This funding call is for the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG) major program, undergoing their regular 5-year renewal process.

This is not an open funding call; only invited applicants (CCTG) are eligible. 

Deadline dates:

Submission opens (EGrAMS)*:
March 6, 2026
Full application due*:
June 10, 2026 (5:00pm EST)
In-person panel date:
October 5 & 6, 2026
CCTG Response deadline:
November 16, 2026
Funding results*:
January 2027
Funding start date:
February 1, 2027
*Note: These timelines are tentative and subject to change. The Full Application will be submitted in EGrAMS. 

Program description

CCS aspires to be the most impactful charity in Canada by increasing cancer survival, stopping cancer before it starts, and improving the lives of people affected by cancer. We fund clinical trials for more effective cancer detection and treatment, to advance knowledge in cancer prevention, and to reduce the side effects of treatment and improve the quality of life of people affected by cancer. We aim to invest in bold, scientifically excellent and meaningful research to lead the way to a future without cancer. Cancer clinical trials are an important priority in our approach. 

Clinical trials look at new and improved ways to prevent, detect and treat cancer. They can improve quality of life for those living with or beyond cancer. They can help us understand cancer better and bring hope to people with cancer and their loved ones. CCS recognizes the importance of clinical trials and has a long history of investing in the cancer clinical trials ecosystem. One investment has been the long-term support of CCTG operations. This has been a significant investment by CCS since 1980. CCTG brings together a collaborative network of more than 7,200 researchers, doctors and nurses from more than 85 different hospitals and cancer centres across the country to conduct clinical trials. CCS provides funding for this clinical trial infrastructure in 5-year investments. This major program is currently up for renewal. 

The aims of the major program renewal are to: 

  1. Assess CCTG on scientific merit, operational efficiency, clinical trial best practices, relevance, and impact over the last 5 years
  2. Review the planned research activities and priorities, predicted impacts and outcomes and other aspects for the next 5 years, using established rating criteria guided by CCS priorities and policies
  3. Support positive change within the cancer clinical trial ecosystem to maximize impacts

Funds available

Total Budget: Approximately $30M 
Amount per year: $4.5 - 7M per year, to a total of $30M over 5 years
Duration: 5 years 

With the goal of supporting both day-to-day operations and the evolution of clinical trial best practices (see WHO and CIHR statements), funding will be assigned to 2 areas: 

Operations 
Up to $27M is available for research operations. This includes:  

  1. Salaries and Wages: Up to $14M is available for salaries, wages, and other similar expenses (i.e., benefits).  
  2. Equipment: Up to $500,000 is available for equipment such as computer software, office supplies, software licenses, and other similar expenses. 
  3. Per-Case Trial Funding: minimum $12.5M total, up to $3M per year is available for per-case trial funding. In line with CCS strategic priorities: 
    • At least 50% of per-case trial funding must be allocated to: trials on high mortality cancers (<30% 5-year survival); cancers that cause a high number of deaths (breast, prostate, colorectal); trials where there is an express focus on increasing cancer survival; and/or cancer prevention.   
    • Funding (at least 50%) must also be prioritized for Canadian-led trials, trials that support Canadian-made innovations, or trials that have been selected based on evidence of specific need for people in Canada. 

Evolving clinical trial best practices 
No less than $3M is to be spent on research excellence in clinical trials. This includes: 

  1. Capacity building and support of capacity building pipelines/resources for young investigators or clinical research professionals 
  2. Patient / public engagement and remuneration for patient engagement 
  3. Improving public awareness and accessibility of clinical trials 
  4. Knowledge translation and mobilization 
  5. Investment in equity, diversity and inclusion 
  6. Commitments to Reconciliation and Indigenous Knowledge 

For more information, see the Cancer Clinical Trials Action Plan and CIHR Research Excellence Framework – Best Practices for Clinical Trials. 

Review CCS’s Financial Administration Policy for details of eligible and non-eligible expenses. Note that remuneration for patient and caregiver partners must be in line with CCS’s Expert Compensation Policy. Remuneration for trainees (Master’s, PhD, and Postdoctoral fellows) should meet or exceed CCS levels. 

*Note: Some flexibility in budget allocation will be taken under consideration. Please reach out to research@cancer.ca to discuss. 

Eligibility

Please review the eligibility and requirements on our website prior to creating an application. As a condition of funding, the PI must agree to the reporting requirements (see below in the “Additional information” section) and engagement criteria laid out by CCS. 
Major program and research team eligibility:
  • This program is only open to the Canadian Cancer Trials Group. One application is permitted in this competition. 
  • The application must include people affected by cancer and may also include people at risk of cancer as an integral part of the team and demonstrate their meaningful involvement. The Canadian Cancer Society’s research priorities place people at the center of our research endeavours. By embedding affected communities throughout the research continuum, we will identify and achieve desired results sooner. We recognize that different approaches to engagement may be better suited to different types of research. See Guidance on Engagement of People Affected by or at Risk of Cancer below for more information. 
  • Early career researchers, trainees and end-users (such as clinical research professionals, healthcare providers, etc.) are encouraged to be included as an integral part of the application and research team. 

Guidance on engagement

The application must demonstrate the meaningful engagement of people affected by or at risk of cancer throughout operations and the clinical trial research cycle. We have compiled resources on our website to help inform and guide the engagement process and encourage you to consult these. These include a wide range of resources developed and offered by the CIHR Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) support units, but also articles on engagement in different types of research. We recognize that patient or stakeholder engagement will look different for different types of research and encourage both broader forms of engagement (as part of an overall research strategy) as well as creativity in devising engagement strategies. CCS requires that people affected by cancer engaged as part of the research team, and in other roles, to be compensated. Unless a conflicting institutional policy is present, CCS requires patient partners to be compensated according to the CCS Expert Compensation Policy here. 

Additional information

The application and review process: 

  • Complete application must be submitted on EGrAMS by 5pm ET on June 10, 2026. 
  • An expert review committee including scientific, operational (clinical trial experts), and patient/survivor/caregiver reviewers will be assembled. The expert review committee will be comprised of relevant and appropriate individuals from diverse geographical, ethnic/racial and gender representation internationally. 
  • The panel review will consist of 4 steps: 
    1. The expert review committee will meet for a preliminary discussion of the full application.   
    2. CCTG will be invited to discuss with the committee to clarify any questions from the application.  
    3. The committee will hold an in-person panel meeting in Toronto in October 2026 and after Advisory Council on Research (ACOR) review, provide comments / questions for consideration to CCTG. CCTG will be given 2 weeks to address feedback. 
    4. The committee will hold a final meeting to discuss the application and the Chair will provide a final recommendation to ACOR. 
  • CCS will also undertake internal and external stakeholder consultations to inform the review and requirements. 

Evaluation criteria are detailed below.  

The listed rating scales will be used as evaluation criteria.  

Two scores – Merit and Relevance & Potential Impact – are averaged together to create a final score. Both final Merit and Relevance & Potential Impact must be above the fundable threshold (3.5) to be eligible for funding. Please refer to the rating scales when preparing an application. 

Duplication of content in multiple sections of the application is strongly discouraged as it is an inefficient use of space and reviewers’ time.

The full application will require the following information:

  1. Team member CVs of the Director of CCTG and OSC leadership only (not including Site Committee Leads).
  2. Public (non-scientific) summary of impacts within the last funding cycle, planned activities for the next funding cycle, relevance and anticipated outcomes (maximum 4,200 characters, spaces included; this section may repeat, in understandable language, information from sections below).
  3. Impact statement (4,200 characters, spaces included) – Broad scientific accomplishments and progress over the last funding cycle (5 years) of CCTG, any changes in operation, and impacts on people affected by cancer.
  4. Response to previous review – This section must include details of actions taken with quantitative metrics to address recommendations from previous review (8,000 characters, spaces included).
  5. CCTG structure and operations (8,000 characters, spaces included).
  6. Overall proposal (21,000 characters, spaces included).
  7. Key milestones and expected timelines (2 pages).
  8. Scientific Committee Proposals (4,200 characters EACH, spaces included). NOTE: only new/distinct information not provided in the overall proposal should be included.
  9. Data management plan and any activities taken to improve data collection and coordination aligned to the Clinical Trials Action Plan (maximum 8,000 characters, spaces included).
  10. Sex and/or gender and/or other dimensions of diversity and their intersectionalities (maximum 4,200 characters, spaces included). Articulate how sex, gender, and other identity factors (e.g. race, ethnicity) and their intersectionalities will be included in operations and trial designs and conduct. Where relevant, also describe how this will be factored into operations through dissemination of results/next steps towards implementation. Describe how equity is applied in choosing which trials to run when faced with limited resources. Tangible commitments to Indigenous Reconciliation should be described here but should be separate from other equity, diversity and inclusion work. 
  11. Patient engagement approach describing how people with lived and living experience are and will be involved throughout the research (not as study participants; 4,200 characters, spaces included). Resources are available here to learn more about meaningful engagement practices.
  12. A detailed knowledge translation and mobilization strategy (4,200 characters, spaces included), including a detailed plan, and a description of rationale/anticipated outcomes and next steps towards impact should be described. Public and/or patient engagement strategies (engagement of patients, survivors, caregivers, clinical research professionals, healthcare providers and other practitioners or end-users) and inclusion of equitable access to results are strongly encouraged. How public awareness and accessibility of trials is enhanced through these activities should be included. 
  13. Terms of Reference (PDF, see template) - Details of the role and responsibility of each research team member type will be responsible for which aspects, including a rationale for their inclusion. Include EDI principles in team composition and the recruitment process. 
  14. Appendix – SOPs, policies, and additional data that directly support the understanding of the application*.
  15. AI Use Disclosure (2,500 characters, spaces included).
  16. Detailed budget.
  17. Research tracking information (for administrative purposes: CCS goals, research focus, CSO, etc.)  

* Include all essential information within the proposal as reviewers are not obligated to review the appendices. Out of consideration for the reviewers, applicants are requested to reasonably limit the size and number of appendices they provide. PDF format, up to 20 MB in size.  
It is understood that applications may also be made to other agencies to provide support for programs similar to those submitted to CCS. For this competition, duplicate applications submitted to CCS and other agencies will be accepted but budgetary overlap at funding stage is not permitted.  
  1. The grant recipient must submit annual scientific reports and statements of account throughout the grant.  
  2. There will be an annual review meeting with CCS staff to review progress and spending.  
  3. There will be a formal external review in Year 3 to assess progress and performance. This review will be in-person, if possible. 

The Principal Investigator will be emailed instructions about completing the annual report in our online grant management system, as well as about upcoming review meetings. Submission of these reports and participation in review meetings is mandatory. Failure to submit the required reports or participate in review meetings will result in future installments of the grant being withheld. Future installments of all grants are also contingent on satisfactory progress and performance. 
CCS understands that progress in equity, diversity, and inclusivity requires ongoing reflection, effort, and commitment. We continue to take concrete steps to address structural racism and discrimination within the research ecosystem. This involves implementing targeted policies, offering training programs and structuring our funding programs to mitigate biases, and actively seeking input from underrepresented communities. By fostering an environment where diverse experiences and narratives are valued, we aim to enhance the quality and impact of cancer research. We expect research teams to also pursue equity, diversity and inclusion with self-reflection, learning, and actionable changes where possible.
CCS is a proud signatory of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) and a member of the Impact Funders Forum as well as other coalitions that work to support better research assessment practices and improve how evidence is generated, utilized, and applied across various issue areas and policy sectors. In line with our priorities and policies, CCS actively engages with research teams in various ways to promote learning, networking, and knowledge sharing throughout the life cycle of each grant. As part of a successful application, CCS expects that the PI and/or team members will engage in multiple opportunities as appropriate and able. 

Scientific misconduct including, but not limited to, fabrication, falsification, plagiarism or misrepresentation of data will not be tolerated and may result in the rejection of proposals in the current program and possibly from all future CCS programs. Misconduct, including but not limited to, racism, discrimination, bullying, harassment of any form (i.e., sexual) will be treated with the same severity.  

CCS reserves the right to cancel the support provided through its program were any of this conduct proven to (have) happen(ed).