Support a Young Cancer Survivor Quality of Life (QoL) research programme by cancer charities and funding agencies

HORIZON-MISS is a Horizon Europe Coordination and Support Action to create a pan-European network of registered cancer charities and funding agencies to organise and implement at least two transnational calls funding research to improve quality of life for children, adolescents and young adult cancer patients and survivors. The EU offers an indicative lump sum contribution of around €3 million for the CSA to cover coordination, networking, outreach and data stewardship, while the charities and funding agencies must provide the resources for the third-party R&I grants. Eligible applicants are registered cancer charities and funding agencies from EU Member States and Associated Countries acting in a consortium with direct patient and survivor involvement and Social Sciences and Humanities expertise. Proposals must ensure coverage across the three age groups, follow open science and EU dataset metadata requirements for the European Health Data Space and UNCAN.eu, join the Cancer Mission Quality of Life cluster, and be submitted via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal between 10 February 2027 and 21 September 2027 at 17:00 Brussels time.

Support a Young Cancer Survivor QoL research programme

Horizon Europe — HORIZON-MISS-2027-02-CANCER-06

Call type, deadline and budget

Type of action: HORIZON-CSA Coordination and Support Action (Lump sum grant). Planned opening 10 February 2027. Deadline: 21 September 2027, 17:00 Brussels time. Indicative EU contribution for this topic: around €3,000,000; one grant expected. The EU support covers coordination and networking only and will not co-fund the projects selected in the transnational calls.

What this funds:A coordination programme led by a network of registered cancer charities and funding agencies to organise, fund and implement at least two transnational calls (grants to third parties financed by the charities/agencies themselves) targeting quality of life research for children (0–14), adolescents (15–19) and young adults (20–39) cancer patients and survivors; plus networking, outreach and data interoperability actions in support of the Cancer Mission and the future UNCAN.eu platform Call page ¹.

The EU contribution is intended to facilitate coordination, networking, dissemination, capacity building and ensuring data standards and open science practices; it does not fund the research projects directly.

Who can apply

Eligible applicants: consortia of registered cancer charities and funding agencies from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. Proposals must demonstrate financial and operational capacity to manage grants to third parties and to run transnational calls; direct involvement of cancer patients, survivors, caregiver organisations and Social Sciences and Humanities experts is required.

Main requirements (scope at a glance)

1. 1Organise, fund and implement at least two transnational calls resulting in grants to third parties, ensuring coverage of the three age groups.
2. 2Facilitate regular networking between partners, funded projects, patients and stakeholders across Member States and Associated Countries.
3. 3Run outreach campaigns at local, regional and national levels to disseminate and exploit funded research results.
4. 4Ensure datasets use EHDS metadata records and tools/models follow open science principles and are prepared for sharing via UNCAN.eu; promote reuse and alignment with EU research infrastructures.
5. 5Use participative research models (e.g., living labs), prioritise local community benefit, and include SSH expertise throughout.

Grants awarded by the charities/funders to researchers must be funded from the charities’ own resources; the CSA grant covers the coordination/networking effort, not the research grants themselves.

Evaluation and format:Standard Horizon Europe CSA evaluation (excellence, impact, implementation). Lump sum grant model applies; applicants must include a detailed budget breakdown Annex as required for lump sum topics.

Apply through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and consult the topic page and Work Programme for full eligibility, admissibility and submission rules. Call page ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Full topic text, submission details, templates and official documents are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal: ec.europa.eu

Support a Young Cancer Survivor Quality of Life (QoL) research programme by cancer charities and funding agencies — HORIZON-MISS-2027-02-CANCER-06

This Horizon Europe Cancer Mission coordination and support action funds a pan-European network of registered cancer charities and funding agencies to organise, finance and implement at least two transnational calls that award grants to third parties (funded by the charities and funding agencies’ own resources) for research and innovation improving quality of life of young cancer patients and survivors. The EU contribution finances coordination, networking, outreach, data practices and cluster engagement, but does not co-fund the downstream R&I projects. The action embeds patient and survivor involvement, social sciences and humanities (SSH) expertise, and open science/data requirements aligned with the future UNCAN.eu platform and the European Health Data Space. Single-stage submission; lump sum grant; opening 10 February 2027; deadline 21 September 2027, 17:00 Brussels time. Funding & Tenders Topic Page ¹

Key Facts

Eligibility and Applicant Profile

Eligible Applicant Types:Primary: registered cancer charities, philanthropic foundations, and research funding agencies that can organise and finance transnational calls. Also eligible within a CSA consortium: universities, research institutes, comprehensive cancer centres, hospitals, public bodies, nonprofits/NGOs, patient and survivor representative organisations, and other entities contributing to coordination, networking, outreach, data stewardship, and SSH integration in line with Horizon Europe rules. Industry or SMEs may participate where relevant to coordination or data/tooling tasks, but the downstream R&I projects will be financed by the charities/funders, not by the EU.

Consortium Requirement:Consortium. Standard Horizon Europe eligibility applies for CSAs, typically at least three independent legal entities each established in a different EU Member State or Associated Country. Given the scope, the consortium should be a network of registered cancer charities and funding agencies across multiple countries, with participation of entities ensuring patient involvement, SSH expertise, data stewardship, and outreach.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Applicants must be established in EU Member States or Associated Countries, per Horizon Europe General Annex B. The programme’s transnational calls and networking activities must span EU Member States and Associated Countries.

Mentioned Countries or Regions:EU Member States and Associated Countries are explicitly referenced; no individual countries are named.

Funding and Support

Funding Type:Grant (Coordination and Support Action), paid as a lump sum per work package upon completion, per the Horizon Europe lump sum decision.

Funding Amount:Around €3,000,000 total EU contribution for the single grant expected under this topic (budget line HORIZON-MISS shows around €3,000,000, indicative number of grants 1).

Nature of Support:Money to the CSA consortium for coordination, networking, outreach, data and cluster engagement. The EU does not co-fund the research projects selected via the transnational calls; those projects must be funded by the participating charities and funding agencies using their own resources.

Co-funding Requirement:For the CSA: no co-funding is required beyond Horizon Europe rules for CSAs (100% funding rate applies to eligible activities under the lump sum). However, a core requirement of this topic is that the network of registered cancer charities and funding agencies commits and uses its own financial resources to organise and fund at least two transnational calls and to award grants to third parties; the EU contribution will not co-fund those projects.

Scope, Requirements and Activities to be Funded

The action responds to the EU Missions assessment follow-up and Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan objectives on quality of life. It targets improved outcomes for children, adolescents and young adults (CAYA; defined by age at first diagnosis) and requires deep SSH and patient involvement alongside robust open science and data practices.

Expected Outcomes

• A functional, transnational network of registered cancer charities and research funding agencies that supports R&I on the quality of life of young cancer patients and survivors using their own funds.
• R&I projects, supported by the charities/funders’ transnational calls, that measurably improve long-term physical, emotional, and social well-being of young cancer patients and survivors.
• Researchers and practitioners ensuring accessibility and reusability of relevant digital data to support the future UNCAN.eu research data platform; datasets described with metadata in the EU dataset catalogue of the European Health Data Space; tools/models leveraging European research infrastructures, following open science, and made available through the future UNCAN.eu platform.

Mandatory Elements for Proposals

• Together, across EU Member States and Associated Countries, organise, fund and implement at least two transnational calls for proposals resulting in grants to third parties to conduct R&I projects on QoL for: children (0–14), adolescents (15–19), and young adults (20–39), all ages by age at first diagnosis.
• Award grants not only by ranking but also to ensure that all three age groups are addressed across funded projects.
• Organise regular networking among partners and with funded project representatives, patients and patient organisations, citizens, and stakeholders across EU Member States and Associated Countries.
• Run multilevel outreach campaigns (local, regional, national) to raise awareness among citizens, patients/survivors, research communities, and authorities; include dissemination and exploitation of results; liaise with National Cancer Mission Hubs under ECHoS when relevant.
• Ensure direct involvement of cancer patients and survivors, survivor representative organisations, caregivers; embed SSH disciplines with effective contributions from SSH experts and institutions.
• Consider participatory research models such as oncology-centred living labs and other approaches delivering social innovation with strong local community involvement.
• Include a budget to participate in and contribute to the Cancer Mission Quality of Life cluster (networking, meetings, joint activities); the Commission will facilitate cluster coordination.
• Give due consideration and create synergies with EU-funded initiatives such as EU-CAYAS-NET, OACCUs, EUonQoL, e-Quol, and projects funded under HORIZON-MISS-2024-CANCER-01-05 (late effects in AYA).

Expectations for Third-party Projects Funded by the Charities and Agencies

• Develop, test, and scale up innovative, holistic approaches and tools (including digital tools) that optimise cancer treatment and follow-up regimens to improve young survivors’ quality of life.
• Adapt interventions to local, regional, or national care delivery specificities across diverse settings in EU Member States and Associated Countries.
• Deliver clear, local community benefits for patients and survivors.
• Data and tools obligations: all datasets described with metadata records in the EU dataset catalogue of the European Health Data Space; tools/models leverage European research infrastructures, respect open science, and are made available via the future UNCAN.eu platform.

Application and Evaluation

Application Type and Stages:Open call via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal; single-stage submission and single-stage evaluation.

Submission Window:Planned opening date: 10 February 2027. Deadline: 21 September 2027 at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

Evaluation Criteria and Thresholds:CSA evaluation on Excellence, Impact, and Quality and efficiency of the Implementation. Topic-specific thresholds: 4/5 for each criterion with a cumulative threshold of 12/15. External independent experts may recommend budget adjustments to the lump sum during grant preparation; serious budget issues can reduce the Implementation score.

Legal and Financial Setup:Lump sum grant under the Horizon Europe Lump Sum MGA. Payments are tied to completion of work packages; no reporting of actual costs or financial ex-post audits. Standard pre-financing and reporting periods apply. The granting authority may object to transfers of ownership or exclusive licensing of results up to 4 years after project end, as per Annex 5.

Project Stage and Target Sectors

Project Stage:This is a coordination and support action focusing on programme design, transnational call implementation, networking, capacity building, outreach, data stewardship, and policy/cluster coordination. The third-party R&I projects financed by the charities and funders are expected to cover development, validation, demonstration, and scale-up in real-life settings.

Target Sector:Cancer; health; patient quality of life; digital health tools and data platforms; social sciences and humanities; living labs and social innovation; research data infrastructures and open science; pediatrics and adolescent/young adult oncology.

Detailed Categorisation Answers

Eligible Applicant Types:Registered cancer charities and philanthropic foundations; national or regional research funding agencies; nonprofits/NGOs; universities; research institutes; hospitals and comprehensive cancer centres; government/public bodies; survivor and patient representative organisations; other relevant entities providing SSH expertise, data management, outreach, or coordination. Individuals and investors are not typical beneficiaries of a CSA in this context.

Funding Type:Grant (Coordination and Support Action) with lump sum budget.

Consortium Requirement:Consortium. At least three independent legal entities from three different EU Member States or Associated Countries, with a core of registered cancer charities and funding agencies; include stakeholders for patient involvement, SSH, data, and outreach.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):EU Member States and Associated Countries (per Horizon Europe eligibility). Activities and funded transnational calls must cover EU Member States and Associated Countries.

Target Sector:Pharma/healthcare; cancer; patient QoL; digital/ICT for health; research data infrastructures; social sciences and humanities; participatory innovation/living labs.

Mentioned Countries:Regionally: EU Member States and Associated Countries. No individual countries are specified.

Project Stage:Coordination and implementation of a funding programme (CSA). Downstream third-party projects cover development, validation, demonstration, and scale-up in real-life clinical and survivorship settings.

Funding Amount:Around €3,000,000 total EU contribution for one CSA grant under this topic.

Application Type:Open call; single-stage; electronic submission via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal.

Nature of Support:Money to the CSA consortium for coordination and support. The EU will not fund the research projects selected by the transnational calls; those will receive money from the charities and funding agencies.

Application Stages:1 stage (single-stage submission and evaluation).

Success Rates:No success rate information is provided for this topic. One grant is expected to be funded.

Co-funding Requirement:CSA costs are funded by the EU lump sum at the standard CSA rate; there is no co-funding obligation for CSA costs. A mandatory aspect is that the participating charities and funding agencies must commit their own financial resources to fund at least two transnational calls and the resulting third-party grants; the EU contribution will not co-fund those projects.

Templates, Forms, and Evaluation Aids

Applicants must use the standard Horizon Europe CSA application forms and the lump sum detailed budget table. Evaluation uses the CSA evaluation form. Key guidance documents are available via the Funding & Tenders Portal.

• Application Form Part A (online): administrative data, participant details, budget per beneficiary (align with the lump sum breakdown).
• Application Form Part B (PDF upload): Excellence; Impact; Quality and efficiency of the Implementation; mandatory patient/survivor involvement; SSH integration; data/open science plan aligned with the European Health Data Space and UNCAN.eu; plan for transnational calls; networking and outreach; cluster participation; risk management; ethics; gender and inclusiveness.
• Annex: Detailed Lump Sum Budget Table (Excel). Provide cost estimations per beneficiary and per work package by cost category; generates the lump sum shares per work package and participant. Use the portal-provided template and guidance.
• Model Grant Agreement: Horizon Lump Sum MGA (HORIZON-AG-LS).
• Evaluation thresholds for this call: Excellence 4/5, Impact 4/5, Implementation 4/5; cumulative 12/15.
• Use the Horizon dashboard guidance for personnel cost reasonableness where applicable in lump sum proposals; evaluators may recommend budget modifications without lowering scores unless problems are serious.

Operational and Thematic Specifics to Address in the Proposal

• Define governance for the network of registered charities and funding agencies; include transparent, merit-based, and age-group-balanced selection processes for third-party projects.
• Design and schedule at least two transnational calls; ensure portfolio coverage across the three age groups: children (0–14), adolescents (15–19), young adults (20–39), based on age at first diagnosis.
• Set up mechanisms for portfolio steering to balance ranking with age-group coverage, compliant with fair and transparent procedures.
• Integrate patient and survivor organisations, caregivers, and SSH experts in call design, evaluation advisory, monitoring, and uptake activities.
• Plan regular networking with funded third-party projects; include co-creation, peer learning, and local community engagement (e.g., oncology-centred living labs).
• Develop and execute outreach and exploitation campaigns at local, regional, and national levels; liaise with National Cancer Mission Hubs (ECHoS) where relevant.
• Ensure data and tools adherence: FAIR and open science principles; dataset metadata in the EU dataset catalogue of the European Health Data Space; tools/models accessible via the future UNCAN.eu platform; leverage European research infrastructures.
• Participate in the Cancer Mission Quality of Life cluster; reserve budget for meetings, joint workshops, best-practice exchanges, and communication or citizen engagement with projects across clusters/pillars as appropriate.
• Map and align with referenced initiatives: EU-CAYAS-NET (youth survivor network), OACCUs, EUonQoL (QoL toolkit), e-Quol, and HORIZON-MISS-2024-CANCER-01-05 outcomes on late-effects in AYA.
• Monitoring and impact: define KPIs on QoL improvements, data deliveries to EU catalogues/platforms, age-group coverage, geographical spread across EU and Associated Countries, and uptake/replication metrics.

Key References and Useful Links

• Primary topic page: Support a Young Cancer Survivor Quality of Life (QoL) research programme by cancer charities and funding agencies — HORIZON-MISS: ec.europa.eu
• Call overview (Cancer Mission 2027): ec.europa.eu
• Work Programme 2026–2027, Part 12 Missions (see section Cancer: HORIZON-MISS): ec.europa.eu
• Lump sum decision (legal basis): ec.europa.eu
• Guidance: Lump sums - what do I need to know? (incl. detailed budget table instructions): ec.europa.eu
• CSA evaluation form template (HE CSA): ec.europa.eu
• EU-CAYAS-NET (EU Network of Youth Cancer Survivors): siope.eu
• EUonQoL (European Oncology Quality of Life Toolkit): euonqol.eu

Comprehensive Summary

This Horizon Europe Cancer Mission topic funds a single, pan-European coordination and support action to organise and operate a transnational quality-of-life research programme for young cancer patients and survivors. A consortium led by registered cancer charities and funding agencies will, using their own financial resources, design and implement at least two transnational calls awarding grants to third-party R&I projects that improve physical, emotional, and social well-being of children (0–14), adolescents (15–19), and young adults (20–39) defined by age at first diagnosis. The EU contribution, provided as a lump sum, covers coordination, networking, data stewardship, outreach, and participation in the Cancer Mission Quality of Life cluster; it does not co-fund the R&I projects selected in the transnational calls. The programme must ensure portfolio balance so all three age groups are addressed, embed direct involvement of patients, survivors, and caregivers, and integrate SSH expertise and participatory models (e.g., oncology living labs). Projects financed by the charities and agencies are expected to develop, test, and scale up innovative, holistic and digital tools and approaches in real-life settings, adapted to local care contexts and benefitting communities. Strong open science and data obligations apply: datasets must be described with metadata in the European Health Data Space’s EU dataset catalogue, and tools/models leveraged through European research infrastructures and made available via the future UNCAN.eu platform. The consortium must run multilevel outreach and exploitation activities, liaise with National Cancer Mission Hubs where relevant, and align with related EU initiatives (EU-CAYAS-NET, OACCUs, EUonQoL, e-Quol, and late-effects projects). Applications are single-stage, evaluated with heightened thresholds (4/5 on each criterion, 12/15 cumulative). The call opens 10 February 2027 and closes 21 September 2027. In essence, this opportunity funds the architecture, governance, and coordination to mobilise and align philanthropic and public research funders across Europe to deliver a targeted QoL research portfolio for young cancer survivors, with robust patient involvement, SSH integration, and pan-European data interoperability and openness, accelerating improvements in survivorship and long-term outcomes.

Footnotes

1. 1Official topic details and submission interface are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: ec.europa.eu

HORIZON-MISS-2027-02-CANCER-06: Support a Young Cancer Survivor Quality of Life (QoL) Research Programme by Cancer Charities and Funding Agencies

Opportunity Overview

This Coordination and Support Action (CSA) under the Horizon Europe Cancer Mission supports networks of registered cancer charities and funding agencies to organise and fund transnational research on quality of life for young cancer patients and survivors. The EU funding facilitates coordination and networking but does not co-fund the research projects themselves, which must use charities' own resources.

Key Dates and Budget

Opening Date:10 February 2027

Deadline:21 September 2027 at 17:00 Brussels time (single-stage submission)

Indicative Budget:€3 million total, around €3 million per project (1 project expected)

Funding Type:Lump Sum Grant (HORIZON-AG-LS) at 100% funding rate

Eligibility and Who Can Apply

Eligible applicants are registered cancer charities and funding agencies from EU Member States and Associated Countries. Proposals must involve a network across these countries to organise at least two transnational calls for proposals. Direct involvement of cancer patients, survivors, representative organisations, caregivers, and Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) experts is required. Eligible countries as per General Annex B; standard Horizon Europe rules apply for admissibility, financial capacity, and exclusion.

Expected Outcomes

• Network supports transnational R&I projects on QoL for children (0-14 years at diagnosis), adolescents (15-19), and young adults (20-39) using own financial resources.
• Boost QoL and long-term outcomes including physical, emotional, and social well-being.
• Ensure accessibility and re-usability of digital data for the future UNCAN.eu platform.

Scope and Mandatory Activities

Proposals must address all of the following: organise and implement at least two transnational calls resulting in grants to third parties covering all three age groups; regular networking with partners, projects, patients, and stakeholders; outreach campaigns at local/regional/national levels, liaising with National Cancer Mission Hubs where relevant. Funded projects develop/scale holistic approaches/tools (including digital) for QoL, with open science principles, metadata in EU Health Data Space, and adaptation to local care contexts. EU contribution supports coordination only.

Key Requirements for Funded Projects (via Charities' Calls)

• Innovative holistic/digital tools optimising treatment/follow-up for young patients/survivors.
• Datasets with metadata in EU dataset catalogue; tools via European research infrastructures and UNCAN.eu.
• Local community benefits; reflection of EU diversity.
• Participative models like oncology-centred living labs.

Evaluation Criteria

Additional Obligations

• Join the Cancer Mission 'Quality of Life' cluster; budget for networking/meetings.
• Consider synergies with EU-CAYAS-NET, OACCUs, EUonQoL, e-Quol, and related calls.
• Follow open science; patient/survivor involvement; SSH contribution.

Application Process

Single-stage submission via EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Use standard HE CSA forms; detailed lump sum budget table required. Proposal page limits per General Annexes. Evaluation per Annex F; indicative timeline in Annex F.

Primary source: EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Work Programme: HE WP 2026-2027 Missions. Related initiatives: EU-CAYAS-NET, EUonQoL.

General Conditions

Admissibility, eligibility, award criteria, and procedures per Horizon Europe General Annexes (A-G). No financial support to third parties by main grant; EU funds coordination only. Successful proposals join Cancer Mission clusters.

Footnotes

1. 1Lump sum details: Decision authorising lump sums under Horizon Europe available via Funding & Tenders Portal reference documents.