Development Call

Please carefully read the information below, as this Development Call includes some important changes.

Introduction

Developing laboratory discoveries to clinical applications is of key importance in advancing healthcare and improving patient outcomes. It ensures that new interventions are not only scientifically sound but also relevant, feasible and (cost)effective in daily practice.

Scope

Development is outlined as the process needed to translate research findings into practical implementation. Therefore, project proposals should include a development plan describing all steps, stakeholders involved, feasibility assessments, and potential risks.

Requirements

The Development Call is reserved for project proposals within the Creation of Modality, Preclinical, Clinical and Implementation research phases:

• Creation of modality 
  
  The goal of creation of modality research is the extensive characterization and further development of new inventions/modalities until there is sufficient (in vitro and in vivo) evidence from model systems or retrospective data and sample sets, to start preparing for human evaluation. The development of psychosocial interventions is included in thisresearch phase. Human participation in the development of inventions/modalities is possible in this phase when it is not meant for a validation in a human setting. Starting from this research phase, concrete solutions for specific problems and needs (including unmet medical needs) are developed and validated.
   
• Preclinal 
  
  The goal of preclinical research is the completion of all stages required to start the clinical/human evaluation of a new invention/modality in subjects, such as:
  • the development of GMP/clinical-grade production, toxicity testing, pilot or technical testing, successful IND/IMPD/CE submission and regulatory/ethical aspects;
  • prospective analyses of the clinical feasibility of an invention or modality without performing the actual intervention (e.g. prospective biomarker studies without changing the actual treatment).
     
• Clinical 
  
  The goal of clinical research is to realize prospective clinical research, such as:
  • a prospective clinical evaluation of a new invention/modality or assay/tool using a limited number of subjects;
  • establishing the effectiveness of a new invention, dosage, off-label usage, combinations of modalities or psychosocial treatment;
  • changes to treatment regimens associated with existing methodologies (including population
    checks) in a patient population.
     
• Implementation
  
  Implementation research encompasses scientific studies on methods to promote the delivery and enhance the adoption of evidence-based interventions in (clinical) practice aligning with the main goals of KWF. A project proposal must have a research focus, including a scientific research question. Eligible projects focus on any aspect of Implementation research, including the factors affecting implementation, the process of implementation and the results of implementation. This also includes how to introduce potential solutions into a (health) system or how to promote their large-scale use and sustainability. The purpose is to understand what, why, and how evidence-based interventions/new methods work in 'real world' settings, and to test approaches in order to improve them.

Terms and Conditions

• Please refer to the KWF Guidelines (see downloads) for further details on the process, characteristics, and eligibility terms applicable to this Development call 
   
• The KWF Funding Conditions 2025 and the KWF Accountants Protocol 2025 apply. These documents are available only in Dutch and are named ‘KWF Financieringsvoorwaarden 2025’ and ‘KWF Accountantsprotocol 2025’ respectively (see downloads).
   

• Projects that do not fit within the scope of the Development call due to selecting the incorrect research phase will not be considered.  It is the project leader's responsibility to ensure submission to the correct call.  
  
  Why is this important?
  
  Choosing the correct phase ensures that: 

  • The appropriate application form is used; this form meets the specific requirements of Development proposals.  
  • Your proposal is reviewed by the correct committee; this ensures the most accurate review of your proposal. 

  As outlined in the Guidelines for researchers (par. 3.6, pg. 14):  

  • If your proposal spans multiple research phases, please choose the phase that best reflects the central focus and primary objectives of the study. 

  • For applications involving an interventive prospective study, the Clinical phase should be selected as the research phase. 

    For further details, please refer to Appendices 3 and 4 of the guidelines. We strongly emphasize that selecting the appropriate research phase is the applicant’s responsibility and is essential for a smooth and effective review process.

• Research Group Support Letter Requirement for national GI trials
  
  Starting with the 2026-2 Development Call, KWF will introduce a pilot requiring that national multicenter clinical trials in the field of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers submit a support letter from the relevant national research group (DCCG, DHCG, DPCG, DPOG, or DUCG) to be eligible for funding.
  
  This initiative aims to identify potential challenges at an early stage - such as limited feasibility, slow patient recruitment, or overlap with ongoing studies - thereby increasing the likelihood of successful trial implementation. The required support letter serves as confirmation that the study has been reviewed by the research group in terms of both scientific content and operational feasibility. Moreover, the pilot encourages collaboration and fosters more efficient use of existing databases and research infrastructures.

Pre-proposal & full-proposal 

Call 2026-2 is the first Development call introducing a pre-proposal phase, additional to the full-proposal phase. This means that the review process consists of two stages: 

• First, applicants submit a pre-proposal. After assessment, the results will be communicated to the applicants. 
• Only those with positively reviewed pre-proposals will be invited to submit a full proposal.

To submit the pre-proposal the pre-proposal template has to be used. An example of the pre-proposal template is available for download below, but please do not use this template to submit. At the opening of the call, you must register and download the most recent version of the pre-proposal template in our Grant Management System (GMS).

Timeline Call 2026-2

Apply for funding

The application procedure consists of a pre-proposal and full-proposal phase (see above). Both should be submitted through our Grant Management System (KWF GMS) before their corresponding deadlines (see above).

PLEASE NOTE: 

• Participating institutes not yet registered must submit a request through KWF-GMS at least 6 weeks prior to the call's closing date

Review process

The review process comprises various stages, including internal review by KWF, review by the Patient Advisory Committee (PACO), board review by our Development Committee and external review by (inter)national referees.

Patient Advisory Committee (PACO)

The Patient Advisory Committee plays a crucial role in evaluating applications from a patient’s perspective. This committee ensures that the needs and experiences of patients are considered in project proposals. The PACO review is also part of the review process for the Development Call.  

From this Development call on, the PACO will no longer serve solely as an advisory body for the scientific committee. To ensure that patient involvement is properly assessed and valued, and to align with the approach taken by other NGOs worldwide, the PACO review will now carry a fixed weighting. The PACO will score each project with a rating between 1 and 5, which will contribute to 30% of the final score. The (scientific) Review Board score (also ranging from 1 to 5) will account for the remaining 70%. 

For their review, PACO members will only use the Dutch Summary, the Schematic Project Plan, and Patient Participation of your full proposal. Therefore, please ensure that you complete these components thoroughly and formulate them clearly.

More information

Please contact our Help Desk.