Gateway's approval process is comprised of five steps:

• As part of a Letter of Intent, researchers answer basic questions about fit with Gateway’s funding criteria, provide contact information, and provide concise summaries of the research proposal, including objectives, methodology, and budget.
  
  
• Letters of Intent are assigned to 1-3 members of Gateway’s Board of Scientific Counselors for review.
  
  
• Each Letter of Intent is independently evaluated by the peer reviewers. The applicants who demonstrate that their project is in line with Gateway’s mission and are approved by the peer reviewers are invited to submit a full grant application.
  
  
• Once the full grant application is submitted to Gateway, each application is reviewed by the full Board of Scientific Counselors at a convened meeting and given a score to indicate funding priority, and the most promising grants are presented to the Board of Directors.
  
  
• Gateway’s Board of Directors reviews the promising grants and determines approval of final grant awards. Subsequently, applicants receive funding, begin their research, and file appropriate progress reports throughout the life of the grant.

While Gateway does not cap any of its cancer research grant awards, typically, Gateway funds research studies with a budget estimate in the range of $200,000-$800,000. Applicants should apply for the amount they believe is needed to conduct their clinical trial. Gateway does require supporting documentation for budgets, as well as semi-annual progress and financial reports throughout the life of the grant.

All Letters of Intent are reviewed by staff members and a subset of the Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) for fit with Gateway’s mission. Full grant applications are then reviewed by the BSC at a convened meeting and scored based on set criteria. Gateway’s scientific counselors are located throughout the U.S., each with particular expertise in cancer research. While the BSC reviews all applications, Gateway’s Board of Directors makes all final decisions
on all funding.

 

The first step in determining if your study could be a good fit for Gateway funding is to review Gateway’s Funding guidelines to self-check against our intended impact and funding requirements. These guidelines are available through the Gateway online grant management system at: https://gatewaycr.fluidreview.com. Based on your self-check, if you think your study would be a good fit, you may submit part one of a two-part application process by submitting a short Letter of Intent in the same online system. The Letter of Intent will be reviewed by Gateway’s Research Grants Specialist and a subset of Gateway’s Board of Scientific Counselors, and you will be notified whether or not you will be invited to submit a full application. If you have questions about the application process, contact us at research@gatewaycr.org.

 

 

While Gateway does not have a maximum term for a grant, typically, Gateway funds research with study periods in the range of 1-3 years. Applicants should apply for the amount of time they feel is necessary to successfully complete the research study.

 

 

Unlike many other foundations, Gateway uses a “pay-per-patient” method for grant payments based upon patient enrollment in the study. In order to facilitate start-up, Gateway provides 20% of the grant as seed money at the beginning of the trial. After that, patient impact must be demonstrated through semi-annual reports in order to trigger the next payment. Moreover, on an annual basis, in the fall, Gateway reviews all current grants for progress, and makes decisions at that time whether to continue funding for subsequent years.