Thank you for your interest in our research grants. Our 2026 grant round is now closed, however please revisit this page after April 2027 for more opportunities.
Our National Research Grant Round supports high-quality, impactful cancer research across the full cancer continuum.
This year’s funding round introduced three distinct grant opportunities, each designed to strengthen different parts of Aotearoa’s cancer research system and support our long-term vision for a connected, equitable national cancer research network.
Our Vision
Through our Research and Innovation Strategy, the Cancer Society is working towards a “big dream”:
To build the research foundations for a national comprehensive cancer network that connects people, knowledge, and resources — enabling coordinated research activity and improving equitable cancer outcomes across Aotearoa.
This includes:
- Strengthening the cancer research workforce
- Increasing access to clinical trials
- Elevating lived experience in research
- Embedding equity and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, including Māori leadership
We are particularly committed to improving outcomes for:
- Māori
- Pacific peoples
- People living in rural communities
Grant Opportunities in 2026
Committed to supporting workforce – we are continuing to invest in early career researchers
- Value: Up to $300,000
These fellowships:
- Support emerging research leaders
- Build workforce capability in cancer research
- Contribute to the Cancer Society’s broader research strategy and network vision
Focused on the Cancer Society’s strategic priority of increasing access to clinical trials in Aotearoa.
- Value: Up to $300,000
These grants will:
- Enable the opening of New Zealand sites in investigator-initiated clinical trials where local conduct is not otherwise funded
- Support pilot or feasibility studies that generate the evidence needed to progress to larger clinical trials.
- Fund planning and development activities required to establish a clinical trial, including protocol development, infrastructure and process design, and validation of methodologies
This is a key mechanism for improving equitable access to trials and innovative treatments for people with cancer across the country.
A new fellowship supporting early-career postdoctoral researchers who have already secured partial funding.
- Value: $150,000 total (over 3 years; $50,000 per year)
- Purpose: Supplementary funding to enable high-quality research to proceed
- Eligibility: Applicants must have secured, or be in the process of applying for, at least 50% of the total project funding from another source.
This fellowship provides a unique opportunity to bridge funding gaps and accelerate promising research careers.
When you donate to the Cancer Society, one of the places those donations go is to support world-clas…
Te Kāhui Matepukupuku o Aotearoa and Hei Āhuru Mōwai are once again partnering this year to award th…
Find out more about the research projects funded by the Cancer Society.
How to Apply
All applications must be submitted through our online grant portal:
The portal includes full eligibility criteria, application guidelines, and supporting documentation for each grant type.