In order to strengthen patient-centred clinical research, the IZKF Münster funds time-limited innovative concepts and science-driven own ideas (“Investigator-initiated trials”, IITs) for clinical trials, which are intended to close the funding gap between findings from basic research and patient oriented research and to bring the findings into clinical trials. The fundamental goal of this new IZKF funding format is to increase the implementation of early IITs/pilot studies in the Medical Faculty. Therefore, after the two-year funding phase, the results from the pilot studies should ideally provide direct preliminary work for clinical trials financed externally by qualified third-party funding. Proof of efficacy of a therapeutic, diagnostic, or prognostic method is a key prerequisite for submitting successful applications to third-party funding bodies such as the DFG, BMBF, or “Deutsche Krebshilfe”.