ATTRACT Programme for Rare Cancer Drug Development Opens Applications for Second Call for Proposals
The ATTRACT (Accelerate Together Rare Cancer Treatment) programme is a collaborative research initiative jointly promoted by six European cancer charities: Fundación científica Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (Spain), The Anticancer Fund (Belgium), Fondation ARC (France), Kom op tegen Kanker (Belgium), the Dutch Cancer Society (The Netherlands) and, joining for the second call, the Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research (Switzerland) The aims of the programme are to make better treatment available for rare cancer patients and to accelerate development of drugs for rare cancers.
The focus of the programme, now accepting applications for its second call, is late phase, collaborative, international clinical trials that aim to develop better drug treatment for rare cancers. The programme encourages researchers and clinicians from different countries to come together, share knowledge, and collaborate. The call will support multi-centre, international clinical trials at phase 2 or 3. For the programme, rare cancers are cancers with an incidence of fewer than 6 per 100,000 persons annually. A list of these cancers is available via RARECARENet.
The call will fund trials for medicinal products, including but not limited to chemo-, hormone-, immune-, radionuclide- and advanced cell- and gene therapy (ATMPs). This includes repurposing/label extensions of existing drugs that are out of data protection and marketing protection, and development of drug/device combinations. Medicines must be intended to be used for treatment, including but not limited to monotherapy, treatments in combination with standard treatment, (neo)adjuvant therapy, add-on therapy.
Main applicants as well as research consortium partners should be based in Belgium, France, the Netherlands or Spain, with a minimum of three participating countries. Participation of all four countries is highly encouraged. Eligible applicants should be either academic research groups (eg from universities) or clinical/public health sector research groups (eg from hospitals or other healthcare settings). Inclusion centres outside of the funding countries may be included in the proposal. Preferably, any external inclusion centres should be in Europe. The involvement of inclusion centres from outside Europe should be limited in number and should have a strong justification. Public-private collaborations are accepted under strict conditions, but private parties are ineligible to receive direct funding. Active patient participation in the set up and execution of the proposals is required.
The total budget for the 2025 ATTRACT call is up to €12.4 million. There is no maximum funding per grant as the amount depends on the scientific and medical needs of the project. It is highly recommended to respect the available budget of each funding organisation. There are no restrictions on how the budget is allocated. Eligible costs include: staff costs; operating costs; equipment; travel costs.
A webinar question and answer session is scheduled to take place on 25 September 2024. Interested applicants may sign up to the webinar online.
(This Bulletin article was the subject of a ResearchConnect news alert.)