BC Environmental and Occupational Health Research Network

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) solicits grant applications from applicant organizations that propose to:
• identify and assess biological or biobehavioral interactions among two or more related and co-occurring symptoms;
• characterize mechanisms and pathways underlying the symptom interactions;
• elucidate the level of interaction necessary for categorization as a symptom cluster; and/or
• design and test interventions targeted to interacting or clustered symptoms that are hypothesized to lead to beneficial patient outcomes.
A rationale for the choice of symptoms is needed, not just co-occurrence of two or more symptoms. The symptoms must be associated with a target disease or syndrome, or the treatment of this disease or syndrome. Studies at any point in the disease trajectory, or during the survivorship period are encouraged. Further, this FOA seeks to stimulate research on the impact that interacting symptoms have on patient experience and quality of life. Interacting symptoms may or may not be characterized as true symptom clusters. The FOA particularly encourages the design and testing of interventions addressing symptoms that have demonstrated interactions and/or common pathways. For situations where the knowledge base remains insufficient for intervention design, mechanistic and methodological studies are encouraged. In this way, knowledge can be developed and applied to the management of multiple interacting symptoms or symptom clusters in relation to a variety of physiological, psychosocial, and demographic factors.