Pittsburgh, PA Clinical Trials Report — July 2026

Pittsburgh participants should act soon if they match a study closing within the next 90 days: 61 recruiting trials are approaching their enrollment window, including 12 that accept healthy volunteers. The largest groups of closing studies involve stroke, non-small cell lung cancer, and endometrial cancer, with 3 trials each. Pittsburgh currently has 1,183 recruiting trials across 395 research facilities.

July brought 13 new trials, down from 24 in May and 24 in June. Even with fewer openings, the city continues to offer substantial opportunities through the University of Pittsburgh, UPMC, Allegheny Health Network, and affiliated hospitals. People considering participation should contact study teams early because enrollment may end before the listed closing date if recruitment targets are reached.

Closing-soon studies create the most immediate opportunities

Several disease areas have multiple trials nearing closure. Patients with these conditions may want to review eligibility now rather than waiting for additional studies to open:

• Stroke (3 closing-soon trials)
• Non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC (3)
• Endometrial cancer (3)
• Sleep disturbance (2)
• Ovarian cancer (2)
• Sexual violence (2)
• Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, or HNSCC (2)
• Cardiovascular diseases (2)
• Heavy drinking (2)
• Advanced solid tumors (2)

Healthy volunteers are included in 12 of the closing-soon studies. Across Pittsburgh overall, 114 trials are recruiting healthy volunteers. Requirements can differ substantially: some studies may set age ranges, limit medications, require repeated visits, or include detailed screening. People without a diagnosed condition should check both the closing-soon list and the broader pool now.

New July studies span children’s health, cystic fibrosis, and older women’s care

The month’s new trials include 4 behavioral studies, 4 drug studies, 2 dietary-supplement studies, 2 studies classified as other, plus a device study and a procedure study. Breast cancer and cancer each account for 3 new trials. Other new areas include adolescent relationship abuse, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, deep vein thrombosis, epilepsy, head and neck cancer, and pulmonary embolism.

• NCT07730814, a Phase 4 study sponsored by Nader Shaikh, compares available treatments for acute otitis media in children. The planned enrollment is 1,100 participants. Children are randomly assigned to treatment approaches to help researchers understand when antibiotics improve recovery from ear infections.
• NCT07732699, also sponsored by Nader Shaikh, is a Phase 4 study with 1,100 planned participants comparing treatment strategies for acute sinusitis in children. It uses random assignment to examine whether antibiotics help children recover more effectively.
• NCT07696338, the REACT trial sponsored by Nicole Hamblett, includes 405 participants and evaluates airway-clearance approaches for people with cystic fibrosis. The two parallel studies examine hypertonic saline and dornase alfa therapies.
• NCT07686055 is a Phase 3 study sponsored by Megan Bradley that plans to enroll 90 older women with urinary tract symptoms. It compares empiric antibiotics, urinalysis-guided treatment, and culture-directed care.

The new-trial sponsor list is led by Allegheny Singer Research Institute, also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute, and the University of Pittsburgh, with 3 new studies each. Nader Shaikh sponsors 2. All 13 new studies are categorized as “other” rather than industry-sponsored or government-sponsored in the supplied data, reflecting Pittsburgh’s strong academic and health-system research base.

UPMC Hillman and University of Pittsburgh sites lead local access

UPMC Hillman Cancer Center is Pittsburgh’s busiest listed research facility, with 153 recruiting trials. The University of Pittsburgh follows with 140, and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has 128. These sites provide especially broad access for oncology, surgery, pediatrics, respiratory disease, neurology, and other specialties.

• UPMC Hillman Cancer Center (153 trials)
• University of Pittsburgh (140)
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (128)
• Allegheny General Hospital (65)
• Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC (60)
• UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh (43)
• UPMC-Passavant Hospital (35)
• Research Site (35)
• Allegheny Health Network (34)
• UPMC-Saint Clair Hospital Cancer Center (28)
• UPMC-Saint Margaret (26)
• West Penn Hospital (26)

Cancer patients may find the densest concentration at UPMC Hillman, while families can look first at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. Allegheny General Hospital and the broader Allegheny Health Network provide another major local pathway, particularly for patients whose care is already within that system.

Eligibility includes children, women, and older adults

Among July’s new openings, 6 include children, 4 are female-only, and none are male-only. 8 include older adults. These figures describe new July trials, not every recruiting study in Pittsburgh. Families, older women, and people without a medical condition should therefore search by eligibility rather than assuming the available options are limited to cancer or other serious illnesses.

Two of the 13 new trials accept healthy volunteers, adding to the city’s total of 114 healthy-volunteer studies. Healthy participants should move promptly on studies that fit their age and medical profile, particularly when the study is among those nearing closure.

Nearby Pennsylvania cities offer additional choices

Participants willing to travel can also search other Pennsylvania locations. Philadelphia has 21 nearby recruiting trials, the largest number in the supplied comparison. DuBois has 2, while Easton, Elkins Park, Gordonville, Hershey, Lebanon, and Pittburgh each have 1. These locations may be useful when a Pittsburgh study has narrow eligibility or when a participant is already receiving care elsewhere in the state.

Pittsburgh’s monthly opening count has moved from 19 in February and March to 15 in April, 27 in May, 24 in June, and 13 in July; the supplied trend also lists 4 for August. With a large active research network and many studies approaching enrollment deadlines, local trial listings are likely to remain most useful for participants who check eligibility early and stay in contact with nearby research teams.