More than 850 applicants are vying for a chance to win grant funding for comparative-effectiveness research, according to the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. By the time the Dec. 1 deadline rolled around, the organization's Pilot Projects Grants Program had attracted a larger-than-expected volume of applications, PCORI said in a news release.

“We attribute this amazing response to several factors, including a high level of awareness and interest in PCORI and its evolving research agenda, and a high level of interest and readiness to shift the research paradigm toward a patient-centered approach within both the research and stakeholder communities,” Dr. Joe Selby, executive director of PCORI, said in the release.

Established by the healthcare reform law, PCORI is an independent not-for-profit organization tasked with conducting and promoting comparative effectiveness research.

The pilot program will award a total of $13 million to fund approximately 40 projects, PCORI said. In the guidelines for the program, PCORI urged applicants to focus on issues such as stakeholder engagement, patient-provider communication, research methodology and strategies for translating research into clinical practice.

The applications will be reviewed in February and PCORI's board of governors will select winners in March, according to the release.