The oversight committee of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas approved staff recommendations to advance a large slate of grant awards at its meeting, including prevention, academic research and product development recommendations that together total roughly $154 million.

Miss Doyle, CPRIT’s chief executive officer, told members the meeting would consider about $154,000,000 in awards and noted that the agency has now passed roughly $4 billion in cumulative awards since 2010. She said the slate before the board included dozens of recommendations across prevention, academic research and product development and highlighted the agency’s recent staffing and program milestones.

Why it matters: the committee’s votes will put new projects into contracts that fund prevention services and research across the state and authorize company investments intended to speed diagnostics and therapies toward clinical trials and, eventually, market authorization.

At the meeting, the committee approved by voice vote a slate of 15 prevention awards, the academic research program’s recommendations covering multiple RFAs and 49 academic grant recommendations, and a product development slate of nine company awards. Board members also delegated contract negotiation authority to the CEO and CPRIT staff to execute award agreements.

Highlights of program presentations included a prevention slate that targeted colorectal, lung and community health programs; an academic research portfolio that included reductions and prioritization amid limited funding; and a product development package narrowing 14 full applications to nine companies at an advised funding level of about $67 million following negotiations.

Members asked about geographic reach, whether new awards would increase clinical trial access in rural areas, and how CPRIT’s standard contract terms (attachment D) handle royalty sharing and possible equity arrangements. Doctor Ken Smith, chief product development officer, said attachment D establishes standard terms, including royalties and a 0.5 percent royalty tail, but that staff will negotiate terms case‑by‑case. He noted the agency has previously taken equity on occasion.

The meeting also included a grantee presentation on CONNECT, a statewide colorectal screening initiative led by Dr. Kiran Shokar of the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin, which aims to map gaps in screening access, standardize reporting across grantees and pilot hub‑and‑spoke models to reach underserved counties.

Next steps: Approved slates will move to contract negotiation and execution; staff will return with finalized contracts and, where required, will publish notices and post contract files. The committee set a February 18, 2026 meeting to continue oversight work.