The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced a new funding opportunity under the Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) Initiative called "INTERACT INTEgRAtive Back Pain Longitudinal Cohort Teams (UC2 Clinical Trial Optional)." This initiative focuses on expanding and enhancing longitudinal data collection and analysis in existing large-scale chronic low back pain (cLBP) cohort studies. It aims to accelerate research on the diagnosis and treatment of chronic low back pain, incorporating a whole-person approach and interdisciplinary methods. The funding is designed to build on the progress made by the Back Pain Consortium (BACPAC) Research Program, initiated in 2019, and extend those efforts into new areas of musculoskeletal pain.

The NIH seeks research teams to address critical questions such as understanding the molecular drivers of nociception, how different tissues are involved in pain generation, and how pain trajectories change over time. Teams are encouraged to incorporate advanced technologies and approaches from previous HEAL studies, including myofascial tissue measures and the analysis of biomarkers. Additionally, teams should explore personalized pain management strategies, predict long-term outcomes, and enhance integrative models that link multiple data sources and methodologies. Applications should also document follow-up data related to pain management treatments, physical activity, and the impact of comorbidities and social determinants of health.

To ensure success, research teams should propose collaborative, multi-disciplinary approaches that will integrate methodologies and data across HEAL-funded projects. Teams are also required to collaborate with other HEAL programs and participate in NIH-coordinated activities, including annual meetings. Awardees will help shape future HEAL efforts and develop systems to share data and findings with the broader research community. A key component of this NOFO is the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (PEDP), which aims to advance scientific merit through inclusivity. Applicants must submit a PEDP and involve diverse perspectives in the research process, which includes input from underrepresented groups and people with lived experiences relevant to the research.

NIH intends to commit approximately $5 million in FY 2025 and $11 million annually from FY 2026 to FY 2029 to fund 2-3 awards. Each application can request up to $1 million in direct costs for the first year, with subsequent years having no cap as long as budgets reflect the actual project needs. The project period is capped at five years, with funding contingent on the success of meeting milestones. This cooperative agreement will involve substantial programmatic interaction with NIH staff.

Eligible applicants include public and private higher education institutions, nonprofits, and local government entities. Foreign organizations are not eligible to apply, although foreign components may participate. All applicants must comply with the NIH Grants Policy Statement and complete various registrations, such as SAM.gov and eRA Commons, before applying.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to collaborate with existing HEAL-funded projects and integrate diverse perspectives into their research proposals. Letters of intent are due by September 1, 2024, with full applications due by October 11, 2024. Applications will be evaluated for scientific merit, innovation, approach, and collaboration.