Clinical Trials Affected by Research Grant Terminations at the National Institutes of Health, 2025, Patel et al.

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Chandelier

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Clinical Trials Affected by Research Grant Terminations at the National Institutes of Health

Patel, Vishal R.; Liu, Michael; Jena, Anupam B.

Abstract
This cross-sectional study summarizes the number of trials with terminated grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and calculates the proportion of affected trials among those with previously active NIH funding, by trial status at time of grant termination and by trial characteristics.

Web | DOI | JAMA Internal Medicine
 

Consequences of Grant Termination in Clinical Trials​

Teva D. Brender, MD1,2; Cary P. Gross, MD3,4

JAMA Intern Med
Published Online: November 17, 2025
doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2025.6093


In March 2025, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it would be terminating $1.8 billion in grant funding unaligned with the agency’s priorities.
The proportion of grant funding that was terminated varied substantially across institutes, with 0.5% of grant funds terminated at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 2.3% of funds at the National Cancer Institute, and approximately 6% at the Institutes focusing on alcohol, mental health, and infectious disease.
The NIH supports a broad array of research programs and funding mechanisms, and these prior analyses provided an important high-level view. However, clinical trials deserve close scrutiny, in that they expose patients to risks and are essential to generating high-quality evidence.
In this issue of JAMA Internal Medicine, Patel et al address a key knowledge gap by characterizing NIH terminations of grants that supported ongoing clinical trials. They found that in the first half of 2025, the NIH terminated grants supporting 383 unique clinical trials, affecting 74 311 individuals.
 
arstechnica.com

Trump admin axed 383 active clinical trials, dumping over 74K participants

It’s a “violation of foundational ethical principles of human participant research.”…
arstechnica.com arstechnica.com

Trump Administration Axed 383 Active Clinical Trials, Dumping Over 74,000 Participants

Scope of the Cancellations
A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine reports that the Trump administration’s federal research funding cuts abruptly terminated 383 ongoing clinical trials. These cancellations affected over 74,000 participants who lost access to experimental treatments, monitoring, or follow-ups. The study, led by Harvard researcher Anupam Jena, analyzed NIH data to identify clinical trial grants active as of February 28 and terminated by August 15.

Stages and Fields Affected
Among 11,008 federally funded trials active during the study period, 383 were cancelled. These included early-phase studies not yet recruiting, trials recruiting participants, invitation-only trials, completed trials, and 43 active trials in which participants were already receiving interventions. The 383 cancelled trials spanned cancer (118), infectious diseases (97), reproductive health (48), and mental health (47). Infectious disease, respiratory, and cardiovascular trials were disproportionately affected.

Purpose and Data Gaps
Of the cancelled trials, 140 focused on treatment and 123 on prevention. The authors noted they could not determine reasons for the cancellations or compare the cuts to previous years due to a lack of historical data, stressing that federal grant termination had been rare before 2025.

Ethical Concerns
In an editor’s note, Teva Brender and Cary Gross condemned the cancellations as wasteful and harmful, emphasizing sunk costs and hindrance to scientific progress. They argued that halting active trials violates core ethical principles, including informed consent. Participants exposed to interventions may face harm from premature withdrawal or inadequate follow-up, betraying the trust of more than 74,000 individuals who invested “their health and hope” in these studies.
 
www.ajmc.com

NIH Grant Terminations Disrupt 1 in 30 Clinical Trials, Impacting Over 74,000 Participants | AJMC

Infectious disease was hit hardest by funding cuts to NIH grant for clinical trials that did not align with the Trump administration's priorities.
www.ajmc.com www.ajmc.com

Key Takeaways​

  • NIH grant terminations disrupted 3.5% of active clinical trials, affecting over 74,000 participants and resulting in a $1.81 billion funding loss.
  • The National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities experienced the highest number of terminated grants.
  • Trials outside the US and prevention-focused studies were more likely to lose funding, with infectious disease trials most affected by topic area.
  • Continued monitoring is crucial to assess the long-term impact on clinical research, data integrity, and reliance on nonexperimental study designs.
 
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