Texas Clinical Trials Report — July 2026

People in Texas considering a clinical trial should check eligibility now: 263 recruiting studies are expected to close within the next 90 days, including 50 that accept healthy volunteers. Prostate cancer and cancer studies account for the largest groups of closing trials, with 7 each. Screening can take time, and projected closing dates may change, so potential participants should contact study sites promptly.

Texas remains one of the country’s largest clinical research markets, with 4,830 trials recruiting across 173 cities and 4,378 research sites. The state added 119 new trials in July, just below the 120 recorded in May 2026. Among those new studies, 21 accept healthy volunteers, while 501 healthy-volunteer trials are recruiting statewide overall.

Closing trials create a narrow window

Cancer patients face several time-sensitive opportunities. Prostate cancer and cancer studies each have seven trials closing soon, followed by aging research with six and advanced solid tumor studies with five. Breast cancer and hypertension each appear in four closing trials. Four studies address major depressive disorder, four involve hepatic impairment, and three focus on asthma.

• Prostate cancer — 7 closing-soon trials
• Cancer — 7
• Aging — 6
• Advanced solid tumor — 5
• Hypertension and breast cancer — 4 each
• Healthy participants, major depressive disorder, and hepatic impairment — 4 each
• Asthma — 3

Healthy adults should also act quickly. Fifty of the 263 closing studies accept healthy volunteers, and four closing-soon trials are categorized specifically around healthy participants. These may involve prevention, behavioral research, devices, or other questions rather than treatment of a diagnosed condition. Prospective volunteers should confirm whether a nearby site is still screening and ask about compensation, visit schedules, and required health checks.

Obesity and mental health lead July’s new studies

New-trial activity remained broad, but weight-related research stood out. Four new studies address obesity, three involve schizophrenia, and three focus on overweight participants. ADHD and shoulder or upper-arm injuries each appear in two new trials. Mental health, relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, advanced non-small cell lung cancer, obesity combined with overweight, and PTSD also each account for two.

• Obesity — 4 new trials
• Schizophrenia and overweight — 3 each
• ADHD and shoulder or upper-arm injury — 2 each
• Mental health, relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, advanced NSCLC, obesity and overweight, and PTSD — 2 each

Drug research dominates the new July pipeline, with 62 drug trials. Devices account for 19, while behavioral and other studies contribute 15 each. Biological interventions account for 14, followed by radiation and diagnostic tests with two each. This mix gives patients options beyond drug treatment, including behavioral programs, devices, diagnostic approaches, and other forms of research.

Major sponsors bring large Phase 2 and Phase 3 opportunities

Several July launches stand out because of their scale, development phase, or sponsor. Amgen’s Phase 3 MARITIME-1-EXTENSION study, NCT07684235, plans to enroll 3,200 people with obesity or overweight. The study evaluates the long-term efficacy, safety, and tolerability of maridebart cafraglutide and extends an earlier trial.

Novo Nordisk is sponsoring AMAZE 9, NCT07720271, a Phase 3 study of once-daily zenagamtide tablets for people with excess body weight. The trial plans to enroll 950 participants, who will receive either the investigational tablet or placebo. People interested in weight-management research may want to review this study early because Phase 3 trials can have detailed eligibility requirements.

• NCT07684235 — Amgen’s Phase 3 extension study of maridebart cafraglutide for obesity or overweight, with 3,200 planned participants.
• NCT07720271 — Novo Nordisk’s Phase 3 AMAZE 9 study of oral zenagamtide for excess body weight, with 950 planned participants.
• NCT07697456 — AbbVie’s Phase 2 study of advanced therapies for adults with moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, planning 2,000 participants.
• NCT07734649 — Sanofi’s Phase 1/2 RSV and human metapneumovirus vaccine study for adults age 60 and older, with 2,400 planned participants.
• NCT07720284 — AstraZeneca’s Phase 3 study of Dato-DXd plus rilvegostomig for high-risk muscle-invasive urothelial cancer after surgery, with 915 planned participants.

Other large studies address prevention and community health. Westat’s Screen2Prevent study, NCT07728123, plans to enroll 84,000 participants while evaluating targeted, universally offered opt-in, and universally offered opt-out HIV screening approaches in emergency departments. RAI Services Company is sponsoring NCT07710820, a study of how access to a heated tobacco product affects smoking abstinence among current adult cigarette smokers, with 1,060 planned participants.

Texas institutions are also prominent among new sponsors. The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center each opened 9 trials. The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio opened six, and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center opened five. AstraZeneca opened three, while Axsome Therapeutics, Brooke Army Medical Center, and Bristol-Myers Squibb each opened two. Overall, 59 new trials are industry-sponsored, while 53 fall into the other sponsor category. Federal sponsors account for three, with additional studies supported by networks and NIH.

Houston leads, with activity concentrated in major metros

Houston is the clear center of July’s new-trial activity, with 51 new studies. Dallas follows with 27, San Antonio with 17, and Austin with 12. Fort Worth recorded seven, Richardson five, and Edinburg three. Tomball, El Paso, and Fort Sam Houston each recorded two.

• Houston — 51 new trials
• Dallas — 27
• San Antonio — 17
• Austin — 12
• Fort Worth — 7
• Richardson — 5
• Edinburg — 3
• Tomball, El Paso, and Fort Sam Houston — 2 each

The pattern shows a strong concentration in Texas’s major medical and academic centers, especially Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin. Yet recruiting studies are distributed across 173 cities, so residents outside the largest metros may still find options. Searching by city and condition together can reveal nearby sites, while larger multi-site studies may offer more than one Texas location.

Families, older adults, and healthy volunteers have new options

Eligibility data points to several groups that should search actively. 20 July trials include children, 9 are female-only, and two are male-only. Older adults are included in 96 new-trial eligibility criteria. Sanofi’s vaccine study is specifically designed for adults age 60 and older, while other studies may use age ranges tied to particular conditions or research questions.

Healthy volunteers have both immediate and newly opened opportunities. Twenty-one new trials accept healthy participants, and 501 recruiting studies statewide list healthy volunteers as eligible. Because 50 healthy-volunteer studies are nearing closure, adults without a diagnosed condition should review requirements now rather than wait for later in the summer.

Texas’s six-month pattern shows a generally active but fluctuating research pipeline: 147 new trials opened in February, 148 in March, 120 in April, 130 in May, 120 in June, and 119 in July. The August figure currently stands at 28, which may reflect an incomplete reporting period. As the summer progresses, new studies in obesity, cancer, vaccines, mental health, and prevention are likely to continue reshaping the choices available across Texas.