Two Research Grants Seek to Speed Up Discoveries and Boost Results in Small Cell Lung Cancer Care

The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF), in partnership with AstraZeneca, announced today that two research awards aimed at better outcomes for individuals with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) are accepting submissions from investigators.

Advances in SCLC therapy have trailed those seen in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), due to limited insight into SCLC biology and fewer strong treatment choices. New work has started to identify separate molecular subtypes of SCLC, each possibly holding specific treatment targets. In its initial phase, SCLC often reacts strongly to DNA-damaging chemotherapy, yet resistance sets in quickly, and follow-up options provide only small gains. Adding immunotherapy to first-line plans has brought modest benefits in extensive-stage cases and clearer survival gains for limited-stage patients.

Since understanding of SCLC remains early and current therapies seldom lead to cure, fresh treatment ideas are needed that aim not just to extend life but to reach cure.

Patient advocacy often shapes and speeds progress in disease knowledge and care. Strong advocacy has fueled real steps forward in areas such as HIV/AIDS, breast cancer, and Alzheimer's disease. Even though lung cancer leads cancer deaths in the United States, it has the lowest advocacy rating among major illnesses. A key barrier is the ongoing stigma around lung cancer, which has slowed efforts to rally patients, caregivers, and the public. In this setting, and given the slow pace of SCLC research and development, stronger advocacy support for this group is essential.

The 2026 LCRF | AstraZeneca Research Award on Strategies Towards Improving the Treatment of Small Cell Lung Cancer offers $500,000 over three years to support new approaches that improve SCLC care. Projects funded will cover key needs across the full care path and hold strong potential to raise survival rates. Correlative translational studies are expected to deepen knowledge of SCLC.

The 2026 LCRF | AstraZeneca Research Award on Strategies Using Patient Advocacy to Improve Outcomes in Small Cell Lung Cancer provides $250,000 over two years to build advocacy-driven plans that enhance results for SCLC patients. Funded work will tackle needs across the care path and offer clear potential to grow research activity, quality of life, and survival.

Both awards will use a two-step review: Letters of Intent are due by midnight on July 15, 2026. Selected investigators will then submit full proposals for review by LCRF's Scientific Advisory Board.

"A deeper grasp of small cell lung cancer biology is key to creating more targeted and useful therapies, and ultimately better care and results for those facing this tough disease," notes Nabil Chehab, US Medical Head, Lung Cancer, AstraZeneca. "We are pleased to open these awards to researchers and look forward to the fresh ideas they will offer. With the Lung Cancer Research Foundation, we aim to speed the next set of findings that advance small cell lung cancer science for patients."

"LCRF's research efforts focus on solutions for lung cancer patients, and we are eager to invite investigators to share their boldest concepts," says Dr. Antoinette Wozniak, Chief Scientific Officer for LCRF. "SCLC has long stood as one of the most pressing and overlooked issues in oncology. Patients still meet treatment resistance and few choices, yet new views on SCLC subtypes and targets are opening paths that were shut until recently. Patients join us as partners in discovery, and with AstraZeneca's backing, we are set to support both new therapeutic studies and advocacy plans that deliver real change for this community."

"SCLC stays among the hardest cancers to manage. Patients often respond at first, but resistance appears in nearly all cases and later options remain too few," states Misty Dawn Shields, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Indiana School of Medicine and Indiana University Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Support such as the 2026 LCRF | AstraZeneca Research Awards comes at the right time, as new science on SCLC subtypes and targets finally offers fresh paths. This research can turn promising ideas into discoveries that reach patients."

Full details on each Request for Proposal, including eligibility, requirements, and deadlines, are available at LCRF.org/FundingOpportunities.

About the Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF)

The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) is the leading nonprofit group dedicated to funding creative, high-impact research that can extend survival and raise quality of life for people with lung cancer. LCRF works to improve lung cancer results by supporting studies on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure. So far, LCRF has backed 450 research grants totaling nearly $53 million, the largest sum from any nonprofit focused on lung cancer research. For more on the LCRF grant program and funding options, visit lcrf.org/research.

Contact:

LUNG CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION (LCRF)
Sheila Sullivan, Sr. Director, Marketing and Communications
[email protected]

SOURCE Lung Cancer Research Foundation