DEVELOPMENTAL FUNDS – PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Developmental Funds (DF) from CCSG support the YCC (Yale Cancer Center) Strategic Plan by directly funding innovative cancer research and related activities. These funds are leveraged with funds from other sources to support a diverse portfolio of internal grant programs that launch new areas of cancer research, foster engagement of YCC members, support junior faculty development, and stimulate collaborations and multi- disciplinary research in accordance with YCC strategic priorities. During our current funding period, DFs distributed $2.5M from CCSG in internal grants. CCSG funds are the cornerstone of the entire portfolio of internal grant activities, and they were leveraged to obtain an additional $7.7M in institutional funds allowing YCC to distribute a combined total of $10.2M for internal competitions since 2018. Using a conservative return on investment (ROI) calculation that accounts for the lag between award of the internal grant and acquisition of new external funding, $1.9M CCSG funds distributed 2016 to 2021 yielded $23.2M new external grants received between 2017 and 2022, a 12.3-fold ROI, with 35 publications, half in high impact journals. The combined CCSG and institutional funds distribution during this interval produced an ROI of 9.3-fold, generating 149 publications with 43% in high impact journals. Notably, our internal grants have historically played a critical role in helping launch the careers of many YCC members, including most members of the YCC leadership team. In addition to funding innovative research projects, the YCC internal grants program has several other goals: 1) Encourage catchment-focused research projects, 2) Support and mentor a diverse cadre of early career scientists, and 3) Promote out-of-the-box thinking by supporting innovative high-risk/high-reward ideas. YCC internal grants demand outstanding science as assessed by rigorous peer review process. YCC Administration supports the DF program by coordinating the application and review process and tracking progress and award outcomes. Grants are funded in accordance with YCC strategic priorities including research of relevance to our catchment area and cancer disparities. Following peer review and submission of funding recommendations, the YCC Director makes the final determination of the awardees. An important new initiative is a recent investment of ~$500k in a Cancer Health Disparities pilot grant program, which will continue with competitions every other year. YCC also supports retreats and workshops to stimulate collaboration and promote team science that will lead to future multi-PI grant applications. Funding mechanisms with this specific goal include the Translational- Targeted Area of Research Excellence (T-TARE) program that played a key role in two successful SPORE grant applications and the more recently inaugurated Team Challenge Award (TCA) to stimulate P01-type funding. Planned initiatives include...