Question 1

What is "Micronucleus Scoring in Human Blood Samples Collected from Wildland Firefighters"?

Accepted Answer

**PURPOSE & SCOPE:**
- **What is being procured/granted?**: Health Canada is procuring flow cytometric analysis services for scoring micronucleus incidence in human peripheral blood samples collected from wildland firefighters.
- **Project scope and objectives**: The project, funded under the National Framework on Cancers Linked to Firefighting, aims to assess genotoxic effects as early biomarkers of cancer risk, specifically focusing on establishing a link between micronucleus presence and cancer risk in a demographic often overlooked in related studies.
- **Contract type and estimated value**: This is a multi-year research contract with an estimated initial value of $8,000.00 CAD for a short-term contract from January 26, 2026, to March 31, 2026. Option years are projected at $72,000.00 CAD and $75,600.00 CAD for the subsequent years.

**BUYER INFORMATION:**
- **Issuing organization**: Department of Health (Health Canada).
- **Contact details**: Teresa McKenny, Email: teresa.mckenny@hc-sc.gc.ca.
- **Important dates**: Posted on January 7, 2026. Closing date for submissions is January 21, 2026, at 2 p.m. (EST). Contract performance period is from January 26, 2026, to March 31, 2026, with two option years.

**MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS:**
- **Required certifications/registrations**: No specific certifications are mentioned, though experience in handling biological samples is implicitly necessary.
- **Mandatory qualifications**: 
  - At least one (1) year of experience in receiving and performing quality control on fixed human blood specimens.
  - Capability to conduct staining, enrichment, and flow cytometric analysis, including delivering analytical data outputs to Health Canada.
- **Set-aside requirements**: No specific set-aside requirements are mentioned.
- **Geographic restrictions or location requirements**: Services must be performed at the contractor's facility with ongoing communication required with Health Canada.

**TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS:**
- **Key technical capabilities needed**: Expertise in flow cytometric analysis, specifically the MicroFlow® method for scoring micronuclei.
- **Specific technologies, methodologies, or approaches required**: Use of flow cytometry for analyzing fixed blood specimens and the application of fluorescent antibodies for identifying reticulocytes.
- **Deliverables and performance standards**: Timely delivery of analytical data outputs; adherence to sample processing protocols.
- **Evaluation criteria**: Not explicitly stated, though capability demonstration is crucial.

**PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:**
- **Nice-to-have certifications or experience**: Experience in handling analyzed biological samples in the context of firefighter health studies.
- **Preferred qualifications**: Advanced qualifications in hematology or cytometry may be advantageous.
- **Additional evaluation factors**: Previous performance in similar contracts would provide a competitive advantage.

**KEY EVALUATION FACTORS:**
- **How proposals will be evaluated**: Proposals will be assessed based on the Statement of Capabilities demonstrating compliance with mandatory requirements.
- **Weighting of different criteria**: Not specified.
- **Past performance requirements**: Historical performance on relevant contracts will be considered favorably, implying the importance of experience in similar projects.

Question 2

When is the proposal submission deadline?

Accepted Answer

The proposal submission deadline is January 22, 2026 (9 days left).

Micronucleus Scoring in Human Blood Samples Collected from Wildland Firefighters

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