The Gotham Prize

What is the Gotham Prize?
Why is the Gotham Prize important?
Who can participate?
When is the due date for entries for the 2007 Gotham Prizes?
How are entries judged?
What is the role of the website?
Can a group of individuals apply together?
Most of the ideas seem to be basic science oriented. Are clinically focused ideas permitted?

The annual $1 million Gotham Prize for Cancer Research (Gotham Prize) is being established to encourage new approaches and collaboration among top thinkers in the field of cancer research. A second prize for $250,000, the Ira Sohn Conference Foundation prize in pediatric oncology will also be awarded. In addition to providing these annual prizes, the Gotham Prize website will provide a mechanism to match cancer researchers with each other and with interested foundations and other sources of funding.

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Though cancer research has long been funded through governments, universities and foundations (non-profits) and by for-profit entities, there remains a large gap in the current system where promising research and ideas may not receive support.

Clearly, non-profit funding is always in limited supply. Academic research itself is also limited by its very nature. Research that is not in the mainstream or that flies in the face of currently accepted theories may not be funded or accepted for publication. For competitive reasons, preliminary research and ideas are often not widely shared. (Though a handful of foundations insist on sharing of preliminary research, this is not the norm). Also, scientists and researchers who do not fit a specialized profile or carry traditional credentials are unlikely to be funded to pursue new theories or follow controversial avenues. So, too, research funded by for-profit entities has obvious limits. Research that leads to non-patentable treatments or cures is not usually funded by the for-profit world. Most areas of prevention are ignored. Research that involves long lead times and/or basic science also does not receive enough support. Sharing of preliminary research and new ideas is limited. In recognition of these issues, it is hoped that the Gotham Prize for Cancer Research will help to fill in some of these gaps and lead to accelerated progress in the prevention, diagnosis, etiology and treatment of cancer.

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The $1 million annual prize will be open to a group of pre-qualified members that participate by sharing their ideas and concepts by posting a short thesis and/or proposal and answering questions on the Gotham Prize website. Applicants for membership will be pre-qualified by a distinguished panel of scientists. Member postings will be anonymous and identities will only be made known to the Gotham Prize's Advisory Board (or through voluntary disclosure). All individuals are eligible to apply, including those from countries outside the US, even if working in the private sector. Applicants do not have to be scientists.

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Entries for consideration for the 2007 Gotham Prizes must be posted on the site by December 31, 2007. However, because the approval process for new members may take 2 to 4 weeks from submission of an application, new applicants should submit an application before December 2007. In addition, since responses to questions posted on the message string that follows each idea will be taken into account when judging the prize winners, there may be a disadvantage to ideas that are posted late in December. (Applications accepted after December 31, 2007 will be eligible for the 2008 Gotham Prizes, however.)

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The entries will be judged by an expert panel who will consider the novelty and potential impact of the submitted idea. Each year, the member that submits the best idea in the area of cancer research as judged by our expert panel will receive $1 million for personal use. The $250,000 Ira Sohn Prize will also be awarded annually for the best idea related to pediatric cancer.

Though successful applications can take many forms, past experience suggests that the ideas which would likely be most favorably regarded by the review panel would:

1. Have a defined clinical impact (prevention, diagnosis, or therapy) if they were to be implemented. In general, ideas that propose research to identify targets that could eventually have an impact do not fare as well since the clinical impact of such a plan would be considered largely speculative.

2. Be new ideas, i.e., they do not simply represent obvious extensions of current or past research. However, ideas MUST be based on solid scientific data or principles.

3. Be ideas that have broad implications for common cancers. However, novel and effective approaches that would impact on less common or specific cancer settings are welcome.

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The goal of the website is to stimulate cancer research. In addition to the annual prizes, the entire website and all member ideas will be made available to all foundations, individuals and groups that fund cancer research. Foundations or other funding sources that express interest in providing funding for any member's idea(s) (whether or not that idea wins an annual prize) will be placed in contact with the posting member (subject to the member's consent). With the member's permission, individuals interested in assisting or collaborating on individual projects will be put in contact with that member. Further, there will be an ongoing online discussion of posted ideas in which members can post questions and comments and get responses from the posting member and other members of the website.

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Only an individual can apply. We appreciate that individuals often work together, but only one individual can submit the idea.

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Yes, we are looking for all types of ideas. Ideas that address prevention or treatment of cancer are especially encouraged.

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