ADVANCE stands for Global Awards for Advancing Chronic Pain Research and is a competitive research grants program supported by Pfizer Inc.

The program’s mission is to fund innovative, novel research proposals that seek to advance the understanding and management of chronic pain.

An external, Expert Review Panel will review proposals and decide on prioritization for funding based on area of interest, originality, scientific merit, and feasibility.

To be eligible, the Principal Investigator must hold a doctoral degree (eg, MD, PhD, PharmD, or equivalent) and be affiliated with an academic or medical institution. Proposals should have one Principal Investigator but can include multiple co-investigators.

All research must be conducted in accordance with local regulatory, legal, and ethical guidelines, including posting on a clinical trial registry where appropriate. Pfizer Inc. assumes no responsibility for the conduct of the selected studies.

The study must start within 6 months of contract execution and complete within 2 years.

All funded research should merit submission as an abstract to scientific meetings and a subsequent full manuscript publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

Please note that investigators should not receive funding from other pharmaceutical companies for the research that is being submitted.

The eligibility requirements have been carefully designed. In keeping with the purpose and intention of the program and to be equitable among applicants, all eligibility criteria must be met for an applicant to be considered for a grant. Submissions outside these parameters will not be considered.

Yes, applications for an ADVANCE research grant are welcome from researchers in any country. All applicants should review applicable local laws, regulations, institutional policies, industrial rules, etc, prior to submission including any trade sanctions with the United States that may prevent Pfizer Inc. from transferring funds. Applicants should also confirm with, and/or secure appropriate approval from, their institution if there is any conflict of interest by receiving research funding from Pfizer Inc.

Pfizer Inc. provides the funding support for the ADVANCE program. All eligible submissions will be reviewed based on area of interest, originality, scientific merit, and feasibility by the external, Expert Review Panel only, which will also decide on prioritization for funding support. The decision on which proposals will receive funding is therefore entirely independent of Pfizer Inc.

Pfizer Inc. will provide infrastructure and administrative support to facilitate the submission and the review process as well as notify applicants and distribute grants, as appropriate.

The intent of the ADVANCE program in 2021 is to fund individual research proposals of up to $150,000 each (inclusive of institutional overheads) from a total fund of US $500,000. Research grant monies will be distributed in milestone payments, in US $.

Each ADVANCE research grant funds the entire study and is not a sum paid per year. All payments will be made according to a milestone-based payment schedule, anticipated to begin in Q1 2022. Initial payment will be up to 50% of the total grant. The final installment will be paid upon receipt of study results.

The study must start within 6 months of contract execution and the duration of study treatment and follow up should not exceed 2 years.

Each ADVANCE research grant is a one-time, non-renewable research grant, to be paid in milestone-based progress increments.

Funds may be used to cover direct expenses incurred during the research project. Direct expenses may include the salary of technical associates, the purchase of relevant laboratory supplies, and direct expenses necessary for proper conduct of research (eg, subject-related costs, study-related personnel costs, diagnostic fees/services, data management expenses). Other costs may include travel expenses to present the study results at scientific meetings, software licensing fees, IRB/IEC review fees, publication costs, etc. ADVANCE funding may not be used to purchase equipment, although the purchase of relevant laboratory supplies is allowed.

The Principal Investigator should not be receiving, and will not receive, funding from other pharmaceutical companies for the submitted research proposal. No other industry-sponsored projects may cover the same work scope as the proposal covering the ADVANCE program. However, an ADVANCE research grant may be related to other funding from foundations or government agencies as long as there is no direct overlap. It is the responsibility of the applicant to justify the novelty of the proposal and provide evidence that the proposal does not overlap with any current or pending funding.

Once awarded, an ADVANCE research grant cannot be amended upwards with additional funding support from Pfizer Inc. (via the standard IIR process or separate competitive research grant program). If supplemental funding is required, it must be secured from sources outside of Pfizer Inc. (eg, government or foundation support). Similarly, an ongoing Pfizer Inc. supported standard IIR cannot apply for supplemental funding via a Pfizer Inc. supported competitive research grants program. ADVANCE research grants cannot be provided to studies already in progress.

No, an ADVANCE research grant may not be used to purchase equipment, although the purchase of relevant laboratory supplies is allowed.

Yes, the funding includes institutional overhead costs, ie, these costs must be incorporated into the proposed budget for the grant application and are not additional to the grant awarded. Final budgets of those studies awarded a research grant will be reviewed for fair market value before the contracting process begins.

Institutional overhead costs are costs to the institution for the support of your study. They are not easily identifiable in an economically feasible way as they are exclusively related to a particular research project but are necessary to conduct the research proposed. Some examples of these costs are human resources department costs, payroll processing and accounting costs, janitorial services, utilities, property taxes, property and liability insurance, and building maintenance. The amount of each award will be inclusive of institutional overhead (capped at 28%).

The grants will be paid based on a milestone payment schedule, and in US $.

Please click on the ‘Research Eligibility Criteria’ tab.

Please click on the ‘Research Eligibility Criteria’ tab.

Research projects are expected to advance the understanding and management of chronic pain.

It is encouraged that awardees present study results at scientific meetings and publish in peer-reviewed journals within 6–12 months of completing the study.

Yes. To ensure that the available funding is directed as much as possible towards the research grants rather than administrative costs, applications in languages other than English unfortunately cannot be accepted.

Tables and figures that you wish to be considered as part of your proposal should be included within the proposal form and will not be counted towards the 5000 word limit. Please make sure that tables and figures are relevant and kept to a minimum.

Yes. Both drug and non-drug proposals will be considered for funding. However, no drugs from Pfizer Inc. will be supplied for the research.

To request further information on the program please contact 

[email protected].

Please click on the ‘Preparing Your Application’ tab for full details.

For technical support for the Pfizer Grants website, please email [email protected]

Applications must be received by September 22, 2021 (by 11:59 pm Eastern Daylight Time in the United States). Unfortunately, we cannot accept applications or addenda and changes to previously submitted applications after this time. Please note: No emails can be answered after 1:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time on September 22, 2021.

Applicants will be notified of the Expert Review Panel’s final decision during December 2021.

Funding will commence after all contracting requirements are complete, but no sooner than Q1 2022.