CALIFORNIA FIREFIGHTER CANCER PREVENTION AND RESEARCH PROGRAM

Program Announcement (November 19, 2024): The California Firefighter Cancer Prevention and Research Programs has announced eight awards, totaling nearly $6 million. These awards will fund teams co-led by California-based firefighters and UC researchers to understand the causes of cancer in firefighters and how to prevent it. Applications were evaluated and selected through a competitive peer review process, as described in the Request for Proposals. Read more about the funded projects here.

The State of California has designated funds to the University of California (UC) Office of the President, per AB 700, for community-based participatory research projects to reduce the incidence of cancer among California firefighters.

Administered by the UC Research Grants Program Office, this competitive grant program invites applications from teams of CA-based firefighters and UC academics for research awards in two categories:

• California Firefighter Cancer Prevention Pilot Grants: up to $300,000 direct costs over 2 years to lay the groundwork for future, larger research efforts, supporting the initial phase of the project, including strengthening collaborations, development of tools and methods, testing feasibility, and collecting pilot data

• California Firefighter Cancer Prevention Full Grants: up to $750,000 direct costs over 3 years to support robust partnerships with fully developed research plans that include supporting preliminary data; carried out by a well-integrated team of scientific and fire service members with demonstrated record of success conducting research

These grants will support research to reduce cancer among firefighters by examining the hallmarks of cancer and key characteristics of carcinogens as they relate to firefighters’ occupational exposures, characterizing biomarkers of cancer susceptibility or risk in firefighters, understanding carcinogenic exposures among firefighters, and informing intervention strategies to lower risks of developing cancer in firefighters.

This page provides the following resources for investigators:

• Request for Proposals
• Program Contact Information

The grant program is a partnership of UC Office of the President's Research and Innovation and the FIRESCOPE Program which is jointly administered by the Office of Emergency Services, Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire), and Office of the State Fire Marshall (SFM).

Request for Proposals

The California Firefighter Cancer Prevention and Research Program invited applications from teams of CA-based fire service professionals and UC academics for community-based participatory research that “will have a positive, direct, and timely impact on the California fire service." 

The invited application deadline has passed.

• RFP for 2024 awards (pdf)
• Frequently Asked Questions (pdf)
• Applicant webinar slides (pdf)

Contact

For any other questions regarding the program, please contact the California Firefighter Cancer Prevention and Research Program at firefighter-cancer@ucop.edu.