The Trump administration has canceled funding for an ongoing 30-year, nationwide study tracking patients with prediabetes and diabetes, researchers said, at a time when top officials have emphasized their determination to curb the incidence of such chronic conditions.
Investigators working on the landmark Diabetes Prevention Program found out last week that the National Institutes of Health has halted funding for the project. While they have not yet received confirmation from the agency on why the grant has been canceled, the decision appears likely related to the Trump administration’s cancellation of federal grants to Columbia University on the grounds that it had failed to adequately address antisemitism on campus.
Since 2022, Columbia has been managing funding for the most recent phase of the program, which is focused on tracking the development of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias among participants. But over 90% of the current funding, which amounts to more than $80 million spanning five years, is ultimately distributed to over two dozen other research sites across the U.S., according to José Luchsinger, a Columbia professor and one of the principal investigators.
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