Innovative surgery as the cornerstone of affordable multi-modal therapeutic interventions benefitting cancer patients with locally advanced or metastatic disease

The grant opportunity HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-03 is part of the Horizon Europe initiative and focuses on validating innovative surgical methods combined with multimodal therapies for patients with locally advanced or metastatic cancer. Eligible applicants include universities, research institutes, public-private partnerships, and healthcare providers involved in advanced surgical interventions. The funding type is primarily through grants, specifically under the Research and Innovation Action (RIA) mechanism.

A consortium comprising partners from at least three EU Member States or Associated Countries is mandatory for this grant. Geographic eligibility encompasses all EU Member States and Associated Countries, creating opportunities for international collaboration. The target sector is primarily health, particularly in oncology, but also includes biotech and medtech aspects, including the integration of artificial intelligence in treatment.

Projects should focus on advancing clinical trials and demonstrating the effectiveness of surgical interventions, thereby reaching the validation stage. The expected funding amount per project is around €6-7 million, contributing to a total budget of about €30.45 million available for five projects under this call. The application process is an open single-stage submission, with a deadline set for September 16, 2025.

Support will be in the form of monetary grants, and although there isn't an explicit co-funding requirement mentioned, it’s common in some EU grants. Success rates for Horizon Europe projects can vary, generally falling between 10% to 39%, but specific rates for this call are not disclosed.

The overarching goal of the grant is to enhance the accessibility of affordable and effective cancer treatments while addressing disparities in healthcare. Proposals need to incorporate patient-reported outcomes and align with the broader objectives of the Cancer Mission, ensuring a multidisciplinary approach to improve overall patient care and outcomes.

This is a summary of EU funding opportunities related to cancer research, specifically focusing on innovative surgery and multi-modal therapeutic interventions. The opportunities fall under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program, supporting the implementation of the Cancer Mission. The calls are for both Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and Coordination and Support Actions (CSA).

General Conditions:

The general conditions for participation are detailed in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. These include:

1. Admissibility Conditions: This refers to proposal page limits and layout, as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form.

2. Eligible Countries: Eligibility is defined in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific provisions may exist for non-EU/non-Associated Countries, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

3. Other Eligible Conditions: Additional eligibility criteria are outlined in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.

4. Financial and Operational Capacity and Exclusion: These aspects are detailed in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5a. Evaluation and Award: Award Criteria, Scoring, and Thresholds: These are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5b. Evaluation and Award: Submission and Evaluation Processes: The evaluation process and submission guidelines are in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. The thresholds for each criterion are 4 for Excellence, 4 for Impact, and 4 for Implementation, with a cumulative threshold of 12.

5c. Evaluation and Award: Indicative Timeline for Evaluation and Grant Agreement: The timeline is described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

6. Legal and Financial Set-Up of the Grants: This is detailed in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Specific Conditions:

Specific conditions are described in the specific topic of the Work Programme. Application forms are available in the Submission System, including a standard application form (HE RIA, IA). Evaluation form templates will be used with necessary adaptations, including a standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA). Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide. Model Grant Agreements (MGA) are based on the HE MGA. Call-specific instructions and information on clinical studies (HE) are also available.

Additional Documents:

Relevant documents include: HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 1. General Introduction, HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 12. Missions, HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 14. General Annexes, HE Programme Guide, HE Framework Programme 2021/695, HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

Budget Overview:

The following table outlines the budget, action type, opening date, deadline, and indicative number of grants for each topic:

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-01: HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) with a budget of 5,000,000 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with approximately 1 grant.

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-02: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) with a budget of 30,451,664 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with 5 grants ranging from 6,000,000 to 7,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-03: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) with a budget of 31,000,000 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with 4 grants ranging from 7,000,000 to 10,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-04: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) with a budget of 25,000,000 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with 4 grants ranging from 6,000,000 to 8,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-05: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) with a budget of 15,000,000 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with 4 grants ranging from 3,000,000 to 5,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-06: HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) with a budget of 11,000,000 EUR. Single-stage, opening on 2025-05-06, deadline 2025-09-16, with approximately 1 grant of 11,000,000 EUR.

Partner Search:

There are 19 partner search announcements available for collaboration on these topics. LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests.

Topic Description (Specifically for HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-03):

The expected outcome is to provide patients with access to tailored, affordable, effective, and minimally-invasive surgery-centered multi-modal treatment interventions for locally advanced or metastatic disease. It also aims to give researchers, innovators, SMEs, and other professionals access to innovative surgery-centered treatment technology and medical devices. The goal is to provide national healthcare providers, policymakers, and authorities with evidence to implement affordable surgery-centered treatment solutions.

The scope includes validating innovative surgery-centered multi-modal treatment interventions, adapting treatment interventions to the needs of the target population, supporting overall survival and quality of life, and demonstrating the affordability of chosen interventions. It requires the effective contribution of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts. Successful proposals are expected to build on resources made available by the Knowledge Centre on Cancer (KCC) and join the 'Diagnosis and Treatment' cluster for the Cancer Mission.

In summary, this EU funding opportunity aims to improve cancer treatment by validating innovative surgery-centered interventions, promoting collaboration, and ensuring affordability and accessibility of these treatments across Europe. It emphasizes the importance of multi-disciplinary approaches, patient-centered outcomes, and the integration of social sciences and humanities. The program seeks to translate research results into tangible benefits for cancer patients and healthcare systems, aligning with the broader objectives of the Cancer Mission.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are broad and include innovators, SMEs, researchers, professionals from different disciplines and sectors, physicians, academia, patients and their caregivers, patient representatives, insurance companies, engineers, physicists, charities, foundations, research and innovation organisations, civil society, regional as well as national health authorities. The call is open to a wide range of stakeholders involved in cancer treatment and research.

Funding Type: The primary funding mechanism is grants, specifically HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA) under the Horizon Europe Programme. The grants are budget-based (HORIZON-AG).

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity appears to require a consortium, as it emphasizes including an appropriate mix of stakeholders from various disciplines and sectors. The text mentions the need for collaboration across different entities, suggesting a consortium approach is favored or required.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes European regions, Member States, and Associated Countries. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The target sector is health, specifically cancer treatment and research, with a focus on innovative surgery and multi-modal therapeutic interventions. It also involves Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity explicitly mentions European Member States and Associated Countries. It also refers to non-EU/non-Associated Countries that have specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The expected maturity of the project is validation, as the proposals should validate innovative surgery-centred, multi-modal treatment interventions. The call focuses on clinical trials and translational research to support these trials.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call:
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-01: around €5,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-02: €6,000,000 to €7,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-03: €7,000,000 to €10,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-04: €6,000,000 to €8,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-05: €3,000,000 to €5,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-02-CANCER-06: around €11,000,000

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants to support their research and innovation activities.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for each topic is provided, allowing for an estimation based on the number of expected applications.

Co-funding Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call (HORIZON-MISS-2025-02) aims to support the implementation of the Cancer Mission by funding research and innovation actions focused on innovative surgery as a cornerstone of affordable multi-modal therapeutic interventions for cancer patients with locally advanced or metastatic disease. The call is structured into six specific topics, each with its own budget and scope, ranging from coordination and support actions to research and innovation actions. The overall goal is to improve patient access to tailored, affordable, and effective cancer treatments, while also fostering collaboration among researchers, SMEs, healthcare providers, and policymakers across Europe and associated countries. Applicants are expected to validate innovative surgery-centred interventions through clinical trials, adapt treatments to local healthcare specificities, and ensure the affordability and cost-effectiveness of the proposed solutions. The call emphasizes the importance of including diverse stakeholders, contributing to the European Health Data Space, and aligning with the objectives of the Cancer Mission. The submission deadline is September 16, 2025.