2021 Spectrum MedTech Pilot Grants

Byers Center for Biodesign - Medtech

Spectrum offers pilot grants for accelerating clinical and translational research in biomedical and health-related areas. The Spectrum Pilot Program has two major goals:

• to stimulate innovative clinical and translational research and
• to encourage collaborative, transdisciplinary work.

The primary expectation of these early-stage translational projects will lead to additional research, external support, information dissemination and most important will develop into longer term comprehensive projects aimed at reaching patient care. Early proof of concept with preliminary data is often a characteristic of successful applications. We encourage transdisciplinary collaborations, but this is not a requirement for funding. The intellectual property of the core technology must be owned by Stanford (not under an option or license to any entity).

Program Overview:
The Byers Center for Biodesign manages health technology grants for the Spectrum Pilot Grants Program. The defined scope of the Medtech component is to support projects involving medical devices and mobile technologies used for (1) therapeutic applications and (2) device-based patient-specific (or POC) diagnostic applications.

Byers Center for Biodesign - MedTech Pilot Grants must have the objective of translating discoveries into novel medtech products that address unmet medical needs. Emphasis will be placed on technologies that have the potential to advance rapidly into patient care through development by venture funded startups, licensing to established companies, or other pathways. Only projects involving Stanford-owned intellectual property will be considered. Examples include prototype device development, preclinical studies, and investigator-initiated pilot clinical studies.

Proposals should specifically address any or all of the following, as much as feasible:

• Unmet clinical need this project would address, impacted patient population
• What is envisioned product that would result from this project?  Explain how the product can improve outcomes, lower costs and/or increase access to care
• Technology status, test results, prototypes” approach
• Status of intellectual property, (core technology must be owned by Stanford, not licensed), description of ongoing IP strategy/interactions with OTL
• What are major remaining risks for project. May include: a) clinical need b) engineering/science feasibility c) intellectual property d) business/market-competitive landscape
• Expected specific milestones (per quarter) and research plan for achieving them.  How do they address major risks and improve translational prospects for project?
• Translational plan for funding after Spectrum Medtech award expires

Proposal Deadline: Monday, April 5, 2021 at 11:59 PM (Pacific Time)

Award Announcements: Thursday, May 20, 2021

Funding Period: July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022 (no cost extensions are not allowed)

Institutional representatives: Not applicable. Because this is an internal Stanford funding opportunity, you do not have to submit your applications through your RPM in RMG or your CGO in OSR for their approval. 

Amount and Period of Funding:
Typical grants range between $15,000 and $50,000 per year, depending on the specific program and the individual proposal. Funds must be applied to specific tasks that increase the probability of translational success and outside funding and must comply with the Spectrum and NIH-NCATS funding guidelines.

Awards funded through the Spectrum Program will be granted for one year and must be completed within the 12-month award period, July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022.

Selection Process:

• Proposals will be evaluated by a committee of independent faculty and external reviewers, and awards will be based on individual selection criteria and scoring systems. In general, reviewers will select applications for consideration as finalists that have made convincing arguments that the investigator(s) is proposing a bold idea or approach that can have a major translational impact in translational research.
• The research must relate directly to applications in healthcare, and the objectives of the project should include an outcome that will benefit patients. Evaluation of proposals will be on the basis of innovation and scientific merit, potential health care impact, technical feasibility and the potential for commercialization.
• Finalists will be invited for oral presentations to be held in mid-May.
• Awardees will be notified by May 20, 2021.

2021-22 Spectrum Medtech Oversight Committee

• Max Bikoff, Principal, Longitude Capital
• Leslie Bottorff, Principal, Bottorff Advisors
• Mike Carusi, General Partner, Lightstone Ventures
• Cheryl Cheng, Founding Partner, Vive Ventures
• Andrew Cleeland, CEO Fogarty Innovation
• John Maroney, CEO, Alessa Therapeutics
• Gordon Saul, Executive Director, Stanford Biodesign
• Paul Yock, MD, Director, Biodesign

Application Instructions

• Proposal Submission:
  • Applicants must choose a primary program area (i.e., SPADA, SPARK, Biodesign - Medtech, and Population Health Sciences) for the project and may apply to another area if the project meets criteria for both programs.
  • Please communicate with program staff if it is unclear which program area is the best fit.
  • Projects will be awarded only one Pilot Grant per annual grant cycle.
     
• Application Process:
  • Submit applications through Stanford University Seed Funding’s website.
  • We strongly encourage applicants to share proposal ideas with Spectrum Medtech Program Team, Gordon Saul (gsaul@stanford.edu) and Linda Lucian (llucian@stanford.edu), prior to submission. The proposal should follow the guidelines below.

Format

• Page specifications
  • 8.5 x 11” page size
  • At least 0.75” margins on all sides
  • At least 10-point font size
• Save your documents as PDFs (or Excel for the budget) and upload to the SeedFunding application (online submission)

Applications Must Include The Following Information

• A cover sheet (1-page limit, upload as a single PDF) that includes:
  • Title of proposal
  • PI name title, email, and department
  • Co-investigator names, departments and emails
  • Office of Technology Licensing (OTL) disclosure (yes/no) and docket number.
  • Amount of funding requested
     
• Body of proposal (3-page limit, at least 10-point font; upload as a single PDF):
  • Unmet clinical need this project would address, impacted patient population
  • What is envisioned product that would result from this project?  Explain how the product can improve outcomes, lower costs and/or increase access to care
  • Technology status, test results, prototypes approach
  • Status of intellectual property, (core technology must be owned by Stanford, not licenses), description of ongoing IP strategy/ interactions with OTL
  • What are major remaining risks for project. may include: a) clinical need b) engineering/science feasibility c) intellectual property d)business/market -competitive landscpae
  • Expected specific milestones (per quarter) and research plan for achieving them. How do they address major risks and improve translational prospects for project? 
  • Translational plan for funding after Spectrum Medtech award expires
  • Also address or include the following:
    • A short paragraph listing any non-PI team member names iwht a brief description of their planned contribution/value to the project. 
      • If applicable, approval numbers for animals and human subjects. 
      • If not yet approved, reference eprotocol submission status.
      • The eProtocol application must include the following: (1) the CTSA grant number UL1TR003142 and SPO number 131298 and (2) the project is funded by a Spectrum CTSA Pilot Grant.
      • For more information on IRB or APLAC protocol submission, please visit http://humansubjects.stanford.edu or https://researchcompliance.stanford.edu/panels/aplac.
    • For human subjects research, project investigators and their research staff must complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) training online (i.e., Group 7: IRB BioMed/GCP Research for All Medical Investigators and Staff).
    • List of current funding related to this project, including internal seed grants obtained and pending proposals for each co-principal investigator.
    • If the project has not already been disclosed to the Office of Technology Licensing (OTL), it is strongly recommended that an Invention and Technology Disclosure be submitted to OTL by the April 5th proposal deadline. See the Inventor Disclosure page located on the OTL site.
       
• Budget (not part of page limit; upload as a single Excel file): Use provided budget template.
  • Allowable expenditures include: investigator’s salary, research personnel salaries, travel (if project-related) and project supplies.
  • Unallowable expenditures include: capital equipment costing more than $5,000, intellectual property services, and food.
  • Do not include indirect cost expenses.
     
• Budget Justification (not part of page limit; upload as a single PDF file): Use provided justification template.
  ​
• NIH Biosketches (upload as a single PDF file) are required for the PI, Co-PI(s), Co-I(s), and other senior/key personnel*, 5-page version (not part of page limit).
  • *Senior/key personnel are defined as all individuals who contribute in a substantive, meaningful way to the scientific development or execution of the project.
     
• Notes:
  • Figures and tables included within the body of the proposal will count towards the 3-page limit.
  • References may be included and are not part of the page limit.
  • Do not include appendices to the proposal.
  • Applications that do not comply with the requirements will not be considered for review.
  • Funding will not be dispersed without clearance of any applicable APLAC, IRB or IRB exemption requirements, highly preferable that clearance is achieved prior to finalist stage in April.
  • If the research does not involve animals or human subjects, award recipients must complete the Human Subjects Determination Form and provide email confirmation of non-human subjects determination See link for more details: https://researchcompliance.stanford.edu/panels/hs/forms/for-researchers#need.
  • Budget should include some measurable effort for Principal Investigators (PIs), Co-PIs, and other personnel performing work (program managers can advise, if needed).

Questions
For questions regarding the scope of the proposal, criteria for awards or the review process, contact:

• Biodesign-MedTech Program Manager

To apply for a Spectrum MedTech Pilot Grant, please complete and submit this online application. If you have any questions while completing the online application, please contact Ellen Orasa at eorasa@stanford.edu.