Improving the late-effects in Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer

Deadline: 18/09/24

The European Commission is seeking applications to increase awareness and improve understanding of the incidence, severity, and impact of late effects in AYA cancer survivors among healthcare providers, patients, caregivers and the general public.

The goal of the Mission on Cancer is to improve the lives of more than 3 million people by 2030, through prevention, cure and for those affected by cancer including their families, to live longer and better. The objectives include: Understand; Prevent what is preventable; Optimise diagnostics and treatment; Support quality of life; Ensure equitable access in all aforementioned areas. The Mission on Cancer will address all cancers including poorly-understood cancers Includes refractory cancers or cancer subtypes, at any stage of the disease in any age group and part of society with a 5-year overall survival that is less than 50% from time of diagnosis. In men and women, cancers in children, adolescents and young adults as well as in the elderly, cancers in socio-economically vulnerable populations, living in either cities, rural or remote areas, across all Member States and Associated countries.

Scope

This topic will contribute to the achievement of the Mission’s objective to improve the quality of life of cancer patients, survivors and their families. The focus should be exclusively on adolescent and young adult (AYA, age range 15-39) cancer patients and survivors.
Each year, more than 150,000 AYA cancers are diagnosed in the EU, and over 1.2 million worldwide. About 300,000 AYA patients live with or beyond cancer in the EU; the majority experience late-effects due to their cancer treatment, including chronic pain, cardiovascular disease, organ and skin alterations, cosmetic sequelae, fertility problems, cognitive and functional impairment, and mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. Survivors may also be at increased risk of second cancers due to the long-term effects of radiation and chemotherapy. The negative impact on education and employment of AYA survivors and in general the financial burden borne by them is also commonly observed.
Late effects are particularly challenging for AYA cancer survivors, who often experience them during a critical phase of their lives. Late effects are also challenging for caregivers. The considerable progress made in treating AYA cancers has further exposed gaps in the understanding, prevention and management of late-effects, which warrant more targeted pan-European research on AYA cancer survivorship.
Proposals should focus on one or more cancer types and address only one of the following interventions:
- Building on data from existing or newly established AYA patient cohorts, ensuring comparability of data across participating countries as appropriate, obtain a thorough assessment by cancer type of the prevalence, specific effect(s), severity, time of onset, relative risk, and risk factors associated to late effects in AYA cancer patients. Attention should be paid also to social and health determinants, including sex, gender, age and other relevant variables, including socio-economic status, living in rural or remote areas and education;
- Develop, test and scale-up evidence-based screening methods for the early detection of late-effects in AYA cancer patients;
- Develop, test and scale up in real-life settings, innovative, holistic approaches and tools (including digital tools), optimising cancer treatment and follow-up regimens to prevent, reduce and/or effectively manage late-effects, including psycho-social aspects. Approaches could focus on education, sports, nutrition, medical follow-up and counselling, for example on mental and physical health, pain management, and wellbeing in general, as well as reproductive matters, including infertility, onco-fertility and fertility options in general and development of effective methods for fertility preservation and guidelines on related counselling.

Outcomes

Proposals under this topic should aim to deliver results that are directed and tailored towards and contribute to the following expected outcomes:
- Researchers, innovators, and professionals from different disciplines and sectors ensure accessibility and re-usability of their data, models, tools and technology to support the UNCAN.eu platform, which is currently in preparation;
- Identification of effective interventions and best practices to support AYA patients and survivors in preventing, reducing and better managing late-effects, promoting optimal health outcomes and overcoming disparities between regions;
- Improved quality of life and long-term outcomes for AYA cancer survivors, including improved physical, emotional, and social well-being.

Eligibility Criteria

Affiliated entities
- Affiliated entities are eligible for funding if they are established in one of the countries listed above, or in a country identified in the specific call/topic conditions.
Associated partners
- Entities not eligible for funding (and therefore not able to participate as beneficiaries) may participate as associated partners, unless specified otherwise in the specific call/topic conditions.
Coordination and Support Actions
- To be eligible to participate as beneficiaries (or affiliated entities) in ‘Coordination and support’ actions, legal entities must be established in a Member State or Associated Country, unless the specific call/topic conditions provide otherwise (in which case the general rules for eligibility for funding apply). Legal entities established in a non-associated third country may, however, participate in ‘Coordination and support’ actions as associated partners, unless this is explicitly excluded by the specific call/topic conditions.
EU bodies
- Legal entities created under EU law may also be eligible to receive funding, unless their basic act states otherwise.
International organisations
- International European research organisations are eligible to receive funding. International organisations with headquarters in a Member State or Associated Country are eligible to receive funding for ‘Training and mobility’ actions or when provided for in the specific call/topic conditions.
beneficiaries, three legal entities independent from each other and each established in a different country as follows:
- at least one independent legal entity established in a Member State; and
- at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.