Bristol-Myers Squibb's mission is to extend and enhance human life. To help achieve that mission, Bristol-Myers Squibb has established programs to support Investigator Sponsored Trials (ISTs).

Policy Statement
Support for an IST will be assessed based on the following criteria:

• Medical Appropriateness and Conduct of Proposed Research. The proposed research must be reasonably likely to produce results that could beneficially impact medical therapy for the condition being investigated.

• Scientific Validity. The proposed study procedures must fulfill the stated objectives of the study.

• Ethical Considerations. The study must be designed to meet ethical guidelines concerning human subjects in research (for interventional trials).

• Rationale. The trial must address a legitimate medical or scientific question affecting the use of a BMS drug and not duplicate other research conducted/planned unless justified on a scientific/medical basis.

• Sponsor-Investigator and Institution. The Sponsor (investigator, cooperative group, institution, network) must be qualified and capable of conducting the proposed study in compliance with GCP, applicable federal and local legal and regulatory requirements and must not be the subject of any legal or regulatory restrictions or sanctions.

• Financial Support. Funding requests must reasonably reflect the cost and effort involved and should not be used to defray normal operating expenses of Sponsor-Investigator or institution which are not directly related to the supported research. An executed research agreement must be in place prior to any study commencing.

• All applicable regulatory requirements must be observed.

• Reporting of study results. The results of the research will be collected and analyzed and a report of the study will be prepared and planned for potential publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

Eligible recipients
Individuals in the following settings are eligible for support of an IST:

• Private practice, hospitals, community health centers, cooperative groups, physician networks, and academic medical centers and universities

All support for ISTs is awarded at the sole discretion of Bristol-Myers Squibb based on the criteria set forth above. If you are interested in submitting a concept application for an IST, please review our Program Guidance.