The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will terminate contracts for the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Regional Centers at the end of the fiscal year—September 30, 2025—according to information provided to investigators on April 21. The decision jeopardizes the continuation of one of the country’s most comprehensive research programs focused on women’s health.

The four regional centers slated to lose approximately $10 million in annual funding are Stanford University, University of Buffalo, Ohio State University, and Wake Forest University. Dr. Karen E. Adams, Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Director of the Stanford Program in Menopause & Healthy Aging, described the termination as “shortsighted,” likening it to “destroying all the world’s music or intentionally erasing the mapping of the human genome.”

“This landmark study represented a long overdue investment in women’s health,” Dr. Adams stated, “because prior to that trial, women had been mostly excluded from medical research.” Since its launch in the 1990s, WHI has enrolled nearly 162,000 postmenopausal women aged 50 to 79 across 40 Clinical Centers. Its research has resulted in over 2,475 published papers, with nearly 2,000 more in progress.

Loss of the Regional Centers will disrupt the collection of detailed health event data from WHI participants, which researchers warn would “severely limit WHI’s ability to generate new insights into the health of older women—one of the fastest-growing segments of our population.”

WHI currently follows over 42,000 women, including the largest U.S. data set of women in their 80s, 90s, and beyond. These data have captured more than 38,000 cancer cases, 38,000 cardiovascular events, 70,000 bone fractures, and 95,000 deaths—creating what WHI leaders call “a unique and comprehensive resource for studying disease risks, early detection, prevention, and aging-related health outcomes.”

The WHI has transformed clinical guidelines worldwide. Among its most impactful findings:

• Estrogen alone reduces breast cancer risk.

• Menopausal hormone therapy yields better outcomes when started earlier in life.

• Calcium and vitamin D do not reduce hip fracture risk.

• A low-fat diet lowers the risk of death from breast cancer in postmenopausal women.

• Hormone therapy initiated after age 65 increases dementia risk.

One of its pivotal trials led to a national change in prescribing practices for menopausal hormone therapy, contributing to an estimated 126,000 fewer breast cancer cases and 76,000 fewer cardiovascular disease cases, saving $35.2 billion in medical costs over the following decade.

WHI data continue to be a vital resource for interdisciplinary investigations. More than 5,000 scientists have contributed to over 2,400 publications and 342 ancillary studies, including collaborations with large-scale genomics efforts such as TOPMed, PAGE, CHARGE, GECCO, and ILCO.

Despite these achievements, the WHI Clinical Coordinating Center (CCC) is only funded through January 2026, with future support unconfirmed. If CCC funding lapses, access to WHI’s biospecimen repository and dataset would be drastically reduced.

In a statement to Conexiant News, a spokesperson from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center confirmed the center’s continued involvement and concern:

“We are reviewing and managing this federal notification that will impact our work. We are grateful for the research support we receive from our federal partners, as these investments in medical and health research literally save lives here in Ohio and beyond.”

WHI leadership emphasized their ongoing dedication:

“WHI investigators, collaborators, and participants remain committed to protecting the integrity of this research, ensuring continued progress in understanding the health and aging of postmenopausal women.”

The decision to defund the WHI, Dr. Adams warned, would dismantle an irreplaceable scientific infrastructure. “It is the destruction of a treasure trove of data, including a valuable biospecimen repository, that will never be recovered or reconstructed,” she said. “The loss to researchers, healthcare providers, and to women everywhere is incalculable—and wholly unnecessary.”

Source: Women’s Health Initiative