STAT+: Women’s Health Initiative, known for hormone therapy trials, to lose federal funding

Federal funding for the Women’s Health Initiative, which as one of the largest research projects in women’s health has shaped treatment of menopause, osteoporosis, and nutrition, will stop in September, the program said Tuesday in a message to its 40 regional centers.

The project may be best known for changing the way hormones are prescribed during menopause, when safety data led study leaders to immediately stop hormone therapy given to its trial volunteers. In the decades since, analysis has continued and led to an evolution in treatment. 

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will terminate contracts with regional centers in September, at the end of the current fiscal year. The WHI Clinical Coordinating Center will operate until January, after which funding is uncertain. Investigators have not received written notification yet, the announcement said, but they have been advised to expect formal confirmation soon.

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