383 Trials, 74,000 Patients
Between February and August 2025, the Trump administration terminated NIH grants that funded 383 active clinical trials enrolling more than 74,000 patients. That is 1 in 30 NIH-funded clinical trials in the country, wiped out by funding cuts.
383 clinical trials halted. 74,000 patients lost access to experimental treatments for cancer, brain disease, and COVID.
The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, found the terminated trials disproportionately studied infectious diseases including COVID-19, cancer prevention, heart disease, brain disorders, and behavioral interventions. These were not theoretical research programs. They were active studies with patients enrolled, receiving treatment, and depending on continuity of care.
What It Means for Patients
Of the 383 halted trials, 134 were actively recruiting patients. 53 had not yet started recruiting. 43 were active but not yet enrolling. 13 were enrolling by invitation only. 140 had completed enrollment but still needed funding to finish analysis and follow-up.
A patient in a cancer trial who loses funding mid-treatment does not simply pause. The experimental drug may be unavailable outside the trial. The monitoring stops. The data collected so far may become unusable because the study cannot be completed. Years of research and months of patient participation are wasted.
Scientific American reported that the terminated trials included treatments for cancer in minority populations, long COVID interventions, and brain disease research that had no alternative funding sources. Public Citizen called the terminations “appalling” and a “wake-up call.”
The Broader Cuts
NIH grant awards in early 2026 dropped 66% compared to the previous year. 75% of scientists surveyed said they were considering leaving the country for research positions abroad.
The clinical trial disruptions are one piece of a larger pattern. The VA lost 40,000 employees. The EPA dropped enforcement by 87%. 17 inspectors general were fired in one night. The agencies that protect public health, safety, and scientific research are being cut simultaneously, with compounding effects that no single metric captures.
Read more on the Healthcare hub and the DOGE brief.