Radiation Oncology-Biology Integration Network (ROBIN) Centers (U54 Clinical Trial Required)

Through this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), the National Cancer Institute (NCI) intends to continue to support the Radiation Oncology-Biology Integration Network (ROBIN) with applications from both new and renewing investigators. This network model will sustain an agile and effective national radiation oncology infrastructure that collectively addresses critical hypothesis-based translational research on the biological basis of responses in cancer patients who undergo radiation treatments. ROBIN supports a collaborative national research network focused on understanding how tumors and normal tissues change biologically during radiation therapy. Because radiation can dynamically alter molecular targets over the course of treatment, the network seeks to generate foundational knowledge that can improve radiation-based cancer care and identify new opportunities for combining radiation with drugs and other therapies. Through multidisciplinary, longitudinal studies, ROBIN centers collect and analyze biospecimens and multimodal data before, during, and after standard-of-care radiation therapy. This work is designed to reveal mechanisms of response, resistance, and toxicity; identify new therapy-induced targets; and determine whether treatment strategies based on initial tumor profiling remain optimal as therapy progresses. The network also strengthens the radiation oncology workforce by integrating expertise in biology, clinical oncology, imaging, dosimetry, omics, biospecimen science, and data science. By sustaining this research infrastructure, NIH aims to accelerate translational discoveries that can inform future clinical trials and improve outcomes for people with cancer.