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Student Mentorship and Research Training Program

Blood Cancer United

Blood Cancer United is pleased to provide medical students with an interest in blood cancer an opportunity to engage in full-time blood cancer laboratory research for one year. Our goal is to increase the number of physician-scientists who are at the interface of blood cancer research and treatment.

Students will perform laboratory research for one year and will be provided $75,000 for living expenses, $5,000 for relocation costs and $6,000 for conference attendance.

Program Information

Application deadlines

Phase	Date
Program opens for applications	June 1, 2026
Applications Due	December 15, 2026, 3:00 PM (ET)
Notification of acceptance into program	February 2027
Notification of lab placement	March 2027
Contract signed by all parties	May 1, 2027
Student Research	July 1, 2027 - June 30, 2028

Applicants must submit

A personal statement detailing their interest in blood cancer research
A letter of support from a dean of the student’s medical school
A second supporting letter from a professor or other doctoral-level administrator

AI Based Application Success Predictor

These are ranked across Blood Cancer United's research portfolio. They are evidence-informed predictors based on the published program descriptions and review criteria; the exact weighting differs by grant mechanism.

1

★★★★★

Direct relevance to hematologic malignancies — Critical

Focus on blood cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma, myelodysplastic syndromes, or relevant premalignant conditions. The research question should fit the specific program and address an important biological or clinical problem.

Blood Cancer United

2

★★★★★

Scientific significance and unmet need — Critical

Explain why the problem matters, what current evidence cannot resolve, and how the findings could advance understanding, detection, monitoring, prevention or treatment of blood cancer.

3

★★★★★

Innovation and a compelling scientific rationale — Critical

Establish a distinct advance over existing research. For discovery projects, this could mean a novel disease mechanism or therapeutic target; for translational work, a convincing path from existing evidence to clinical application.

4

★★★★★

Methodological rigor and feasibility — Critical

Use appropriate models, controls, endpoints and analysis. Present preliminary evidence where relevant, realistic milestones, available resources, and contingency plans. Clinical trials need a credible recruitment and trial-delivery plan.

5

★★★★☆

Clear route to patient benefit — Very high

For translational and clinical programs, show how the work could improve treatment, diagnosis, prevention or patient outcomes. For discovery grants, a credible mechanistic advance that opens new therapeutic possibilities may be the appropriate impact pathway.

Blood Cancer United

6

★★★★☆

Investigator qualifications and career-stage fit — Very high

Match the applicant's track record to the mechanism. Career Development Program applicants should demonstrate research promise and appropriate mentorship; SCOR and ACT applications require established investigators and suitably experienced teams.

Blood Cancer United

7

★★★★☆

Mentorship, collaboration and research environment — Very high

Show access to complementary expertise, relevant infrastructure, clinical populations, biospecimens or technologies. For multidisciplinary programs, demonstrate why the collaborators are necessary and how their work integrates into a coherent research plan.

8

★★★★☆

Patient involvement and health equity — High, or program-specific requirement

For ACT clinical trials, a Patient Involvement Plan is mandatory and forms part of scientific review. The Equity in Access program prioritizes evidence that can reduce barriers to care through policy or healthcare-practice changes.

Blood Cancer United

9

★★★★☆

Potential for sustained impact and future research — High

Explain how the award will generate important evidence, enable subsequent studies, support further funding, or build a sustainable collaborative research program. This is particularly important for early-career and center-based mechanisms.

10

★★★★☆

Program alignment, budget and application compliance — Essential gate

Choose the correct grant mechanism, meet its eligibility conditions, follow the LOI/full-application process, justify the budget, and submit every required component. Blood Cancer United explicitly evaluates programmatic fit alongside scientific merit and available funds.

Blood Cancer United

Highest-priority research areas

Research area	Strong proposal characteristics
Leukemia and lymphoma	Novel disease biology, treatment response, resistance or therapeutic strategies
Multiple myeloma	New targets, innovative treatment combinations and improved patient outcomes
Myelodysplastic syndromes	Disease progression, molecular mechanisms and new therapeutic approaches
Premalignant blood disorders	Understanding progression toward malignancy and opportunities for prevention
Translational research	A clear pathway from laboratory findings to clinical testing
Academic clinical trials	Investigator-initiated Phase 1/2 trials addressing unmet needs in blood cancer
Blood cancer health equity	Evidence and actionable solutions to barriers in insurance, access, treatment and survivorship
Long-term and late effects	Improved quality of life and management of consequences of cancer and its treatment
Technology and informatics	Improved detection, monitoring, disease classification or discovery of therapeutic targets

These are portfolio-wide areas, not a guarantee that every topic is eligible in every funding cycle. For the 2026–2027 cycle, SCOR has specifically identified MDS and a second competition covering T-cell lymphoma, myeloproliferative neoplasms, multiple myeloma or pediatric leukemia.

Blood Cancer United

What makes an application weak?

A proposal that does not directly address a blood cancer or an eligible premalignant condition.

A research question that is incremental and lacks a clear scientific rationale.

Weak preliminary evidence for a project requiring substantial translational development.

An unrealistic experimental, recruitment or clinical-trial plan.

A poor fit between the project and the funding mechanism.

An insufficiently experienced team or weak mentoring plan.

Missing patient involvement for an ACT application.

An access-to-care project without actionable policy or practice implications.

A budget that does not reflect the proposed work or exceeds program limits.

Missing eligibility documents or failure to follow the LOI and invitation requirements.

Competitive proposal formula

Important blood cancer problem

Novel hypothesis and strong scientific rationale

Rigorous, feasible research plan

Appropriate investigator, mentor and collaborators

Clear clinical, translational or discovery impact

Precise program fit, justified budget and complete application

Classification for your grant database

Field	Classification
Organization	Blood Cancer United
Organization type	Nonprofit blood cancer research and patient-support organization
Primary funding category	Hematologic malignancy research
Main research domains	Leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, MDS and premalignant blood disorders
Secondary domains	Translational oncology, clinical trials, disease mechanisms, diagnostics, health equity and survivorship
Funding mechanisms	Discovery grants, translational grants, career development, specialized research centers and clinical trials
Career stages	Trainees, early-career investigators and established multidisciplinary teams, depending on program
Geographic scope	International eligibility for several programs, subject to individual rules

Overall success formula: Blood cancer relevance + scientific significance + innovation + rigor + feasibility + investigator/team strength + credible impact + exact program alignment.

Official starting point: Blood Cancer United Research Grants. The best next step is to select the mechanism that matches the proposal's maturity: Discovery Grant Program for foundational science, Translational Research Program for work moving toward clinical application, Career Development Program for eligible early-career researchers, or Academic Clinical Trials for eligible investigator-initiated trials.

Specialties

Cancer

Oncology

Hematology

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants are ideally 3rd or 4th year medical students at either an LCME or COCA accredited medical school in good standing by the application due date, however, 2nd year students with a strong interest in Hematology/Oncology will also be considered.
Students must be from schools which are not affiliated with an NCI-Designated Cancer Center OR from schools where opportunities for malignant hematology research are limited.
Must be a United States citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. or a U.S. territory

Eligible Countries:

United States

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: Blood Cancer United

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: 1201 15th Street N.W., Suite 410, Washington, D.C. 20005 (888) 557-7177

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