Selected Topics in Transfusion Medicine (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 18 126

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 18 126

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity titled "Selected Topics in Transfusion Medicine (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number PAR 18-126) supports investigator-initiated research in blood banking and transfusion medicine. Its central aim is to strengthen public health by improving both the safety and the availability of the blood supply, while also advancing how transfusion medicine is practiced in clinical settings. The FOA is designed for projects that generate practical, evidence-based improvements across the transfusion chain, from donor recruitment and donation safety to product quality, transfusion decision-making, and management of transfusion-related complications. Because the mechanism is an R01, it is intended for substantial, hypothesis-driven research programs rather than small pilot efforts, and it allows (but does not require) clinical trials.

A major emphasis of the announcement is protecting and improving blood donor health. This includes research that examines risks donors may face during or after donation, strategies to reduce adverse donor events, and approaches to ensure donation remains safe for diverse donor populations. Alongside donor-focused work, the FOA highlights the need to improve the safety and availability of blood products. That can include studies on how blood products are collected, processed, tested, stored, and distributed, as well as innovations that reduce contamination or other product-related risks. The broader goal is to ensure that patients who need transfusion can access safe products reliably, even as demand patterns, donor demographics, and health threats evolve.

Another key research area encouraged under this opportunity involves transfusion-associated adverse events. The FOA explicitly calls for studies that clarify the determinants, mechanisms, and contributing factors behind adverse transfusion outcomes, and for research that identifies how to prevent or minimize those risks in real-world practice. This may include work that improves recognition and reporting of adverse events, refines risk prediction, or evaluates interventions that lower the incidence or severity of complications. In parallel, the FOA promotes research to improve the practice of transfusion medicine more generally, which can include evidence to guide clinical decision-making, patient blood management approaches, and strategies that optimize when and how transfusions are used.

Maintaining an adequate and stable blood supply is another priority theme. The announcement notes that sustaining supply depends not only on recruiting new donors, but also on retaining existing donors and reducing barriers to repeat donation. It therefore encourages research on enhanced recruitment and retention programs and on minimizing risks associated with the donation process that might discourage future donation. In practical terms, that can span behavioral, community-based, systems-level, and operational research that identifies what drives donor participation and how to design scalable programs that increase donation without compromising safety.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary grant opportunity in the health funding category (CFDA 93.839) using the NIH R01 grant funding instrument. Clinical trials are optional, meaning applicants may propose clinical trial research if it fits their aims, but non-trial mechanistic, observational, or translational studies are also appropriate. The listed original closing date in the provided source data is January 7, 2020, and the FOA record creation date is November 8, 2017. The source information provided does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards, indicating those details are either not set in the excerpt or vary depending on NIH institute budgets and the merit of applications received.

Eligibility is intentionally broad and includes many types of organizations that can contribute meaningfully to transfusion medicine research. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant categories 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), eligible federal agencies, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). In effect, the program is structured to welcome proposals from a wide range of academic, clinical, governmental, and community stakeholders, reflecting the fact that transfusion safety and blood availability are complex, system-wide challenges that benefit from diverse research perspectives and settings.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Selected Topics in Transfusion Medicine (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): 93.839.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-11-08.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-01-07. (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 18 126

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