How to Apply

2026-27 Rising Star Grant

The Honorable Tina Brozman Foundation (“Tina’s Wish”) is requesting Proposals for the Tina’s Wish Rising Star Grants for 2026-27.  Tina’s Wish is committed to supporting early career researchers who bring fresh approaches to the study of the early detection or interception of ovarian cancer.  The goal is to assist and support promising researchers in the ovarian cancer field and to encourage them to take risks and develop innovative projects.

The 2026-27 Rising Star Grants are now funded at $100,000/year for two (2) years, total grant award: $200,000.

Timeline

1. Full Proposal Application deadline: Monday, June 2^nd, 12pm ET.
2. Announcement of the 2026-27 Rising Star Grant (RSG) will be made by November 2025.
3. Written critiques will not be provided to any applicants.
4. Funding will commence on or around January 1, 2026.

Eligibility and Selection Criteria (applicants must meet ALL the criteria; additional details in the above pdf)

1. Applicants must be working in a school of medicine or public health, or a recognized non-profit scientific research facility in the United States.
2. Applicants should hold a PhD, MD, or MD, PhD degree.
   1. PhD applicants must be in a postdoctoral position or within three (3) years of their first faculty appointment  (a non-tenured level position) when the grant begins in January 2026.  PhD applicants at the instructor level are eligible to apply if their lab is embedded in a more senior/established lab; PhD applicants at the Instructor level who have an independent lab should review the Team Science Grant (TSG) opportunity.
   2. MD or MD, PhD applicants must be at the instructor or assistant professor level (or a similar faculty position) and within three years of starting their first faculty appointment at the time of the estimated award date (January 2026).  Note:  Clinical or research fellows with dedicated research time for the full two years of the Rising Star Grant funding period (January 2026-December 2027) will also be eligible. Fellows should include a letter of institutional commitment from one’s department chair of at least 75% research time for the Rising Star Grant funding period with their application; dedicated research time can be contingent about receipt of the Rising Star grant .
3. Applicants must have a committed mentor to support the applicant throughout the grant period.  One’s mentor does not need to be at the same institution as the applicant, provided that the mentor is committed to a meaningful and productive relationship throughout the grant period.
4. Projects must be innovative and focused on early detection or interception of ovarian cancer. For this funding call, Interception refers to disruption of the oncogenic process during the precursor or precancer state. Research on primary prevention of cancer before the oncogenic process begins is not eligible.
5. The research project for which support is requested should be innovative and not currently funded.