Scientific Awards AstraZeneca Foundation

Financing description

Main features

• Reward established investigators on the basis of their previous work, with a perspective of future development in the same field.
• Amount: 25.000 €/Award. Half of the amount will be attributed to the laureates for personnal use; the other half will be attributed to the laureates' laboratory.

Eligible topics

One Award will be granted in each of the following topics:

• Cancer as a Systemic Disease: Insights on Organ Crosstalk
  Research that elucidates systemic hallmarks of cancer and inter-organ communication networks shaping tumor initiation, progression, organotropism/metastasis, treatment response/resistance, and cancer-associated conditions.
• Zoonoses and Climate Change as Emerging Threats to Human Health
  Research on pathogen emergence, reservoirs, cross-species transmission and evolution, outbreak prediction and intervention strategies under the concept of One Health surveillance, particularly in the context of climate change and its impact on human health, including through changes in vector dissemination.
• Multi-Omics for Routine Risk Stratification and Prevention
  Research that develops, validates, and translates integrated multi‑omic tools for scalable risk stratification, early detection, and prevention in routine care, including through integration with clinical/EHR, imaging, and building digital phenotypes.

Eligible applicants

• Applicants should be active in the above mentioned fields of research, with both ongoing work related to the focus of the Award and future prospects.
• Applicants must be individual scientist from postdoctoral level onwards who are affiliated to a Belgian university, a Belgian university hospital or an eligible research institute  (at the deadline of the call).
• Applicants must have held a research position in Belgium for at least five years in a consecutive or cumulative period (at the deadline of the call).
• Applicants must have obtained their (first) PhD degree maximum 15 years before the deadline of the call (possibly extended in case of eligible career breaks).
• Applicants may not have received an Award for the work submitted with the same amount or higher in the last 3 years (at the deadline of the call).
• Applicants can only apply to one AstraZeneca Award per call.
• Personnel of the AstraZeneca Foundation or affiliated to the AstraZeneca Foundation are not eligible for the Awards.

Call timeline

• Opening of the call: March 19, 2026
• Deadline of the call: May 4, 2026
• Jury meeting: Fall 2026
• Awarding ceremony: 10 December 2026 at the Palace of the Academies (Brussels)

How to apply

Applications, written in English, must be sent electronically to prix@frs-fnrs.be on 4 May 2026 at the latest. 
 
The requested documents are:

• The application form pertaining to the Award you wish to apply to (see below), duly completed and signed.
• A detailed curriculum vitae.
• A complete list of publications.

Rules:

• Cancer as a Systemic Disease
• Zoonoses and Climate Change
• Multi-Omics for Routine Risk Stratification and Prevention

Application forms:

• Cancer as a Systemic Disease
• Zoonoses and Climate Change
• Multi-Omics for Routine Risk Stratification and Prevention

The list of the previous winners is available here.

Questions about the Awards should be addressed via email to prix@frs-fnrs.be.