Innovative Seed Grants

The Leukaemia Foundation Innovative Seed Grants provide targeted funding for projects at a critical early stage in the research lifecycle. By supporting innovation at its inception, the program enables researchers to test novel concepts, generate preliminary data and build the foundations required for larger competitive grants, clinical trials or progress toward real-world implementation.

The Seed Grants aim to:

• Support research that explores new concepts, challenges existing approaches and opens up new directions in blood cancer diagnosis, treatment, and care.
• Encourage high-risk, high-reward ideas with the potential to lead to significant advances in blood cancer research.
• Enable researchers to generate pilot or feasibility data that strengthens future applications and provides a pathway towards larger national or international competitive funding.
• Lay the groundwork for future translational, clinical or health services research that can improve outcomes for people living with blood cancer.
• Support the exploration of emerging technologies, methodologies or interdisciplinary approaches that may advance the field.

Together, these aims are designed to support innovative early-stage research and build the evidence base needed to drive future advances in blood cancer research and care.

Innovative Seed Grant details

Funding:

• $60,000

Duration:

• 12 months

Project focus:

Can focus on a specific blood cancer type or address multiple conditions and may target any stage of the patient journey – from diagnosis and active treatment through to survivorship and ongoing care.  Successful projects will exemplify innovative concepts and approaches and a high potential to lead to further funding and scientific breakthroughs.

Eligibility:

Projects must:

• Align with at least one of Leukaemia Foundation’s strategic research priorities
  • Implementation Science
  • Prevention, early detection and diagnostics
  • Therapies and treatment
• Clearly address an area of unmet need or knowledge gap in blood cancer.
• Demonstrate the potential for meaningful impact, including benefits to patients, health services, or the broader blood cancer research community.
• Be achievable within the funding period and clearly outline milestones, outputs and expected outcomes.
• Comply with all institutional ethics, governance, and regulatory requirements

Lead applicants must:

• Be Australian citizens or permanent residents of Australia
• Hold academic, clinical or research appointment at an eligible institution (Australian university, hospital, health service, or research institution) with institutional support for the duration of the project
• Lead applicant must hold a PhD or demonstrate equivalent research experience relevant to the proposed project.
• Submit no more than one application as Chief Investigator.
• Obtain the support of an administering institution, which will be responsible for the management of the grant funds and compliance with all reporting and governance requirement.
• Be responsible for the scientific and administrative leadership of the project, including project delivery and reporting to the Leukaemia Foundation.

Key dates:

• Applications open: 26 May 2026
• Applications close: 6 July 2026
• Applicants notified and project commencement: from August 2026

How to apply

For further information on the Seed Grants, please view the Seed Grant Guideline document below.

For any queries, please contact our research team via email at [email protected].