Home air pollution and lung health in children with cystic fibrosis
Official title: Home Air Pollution in Children with Cystic Fibrosis (HEROIC-CF)
Funded at Seattle Children's Hospital · NIH-11272152 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how air pollution in and around the home affects lung health in children with cystic fibrosis, with a focus on Hispanic children who often have worse outcomes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Seattle Children's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Seattle, United States) |
| Project start | May 1, 2026 |
| Project end | April 30, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $893,522 |
| NIH project number | 1R01HL183249-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11272152 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children with cystic fibrosis from birth through age 11, especially preschool and early school-age children, whose families can host home air monitoring and share medical records.
✕Less likely to help
Adults with CF, children older than 11, families unwilling to allow home monitoring or share clinical data, and patients whose lung disease is driven solely by genetic factors may not directly benefit.
What this research studies
You'll be asked to enroll your child with CF and allow air sensors to be placed in and around your home while researchers also use local pollution data. Your child's clinic visits and medical records will be used to collect lung function measurements, respiratory symptoms, and exacerbation history. The team will compare pollution exposure and lung health between Hispanic and non-Hispanic children to understand differences in disease severity. Over several years they will combine these environmental and clinical data with statistical models to identify pollution-related risks that could be changed.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal pollution-related causes of worse lung disease and lead to targeted advice, home interventions, or policy changes that reduce exposures and improve outcomes for children with CF, especially Hispanic children.
How similar studies have gone: Links between air pollution and poorer lung function are well established in healthy children and asthma, but applying these methods to cystic fibrosis and to explain Hispanic disparities is relatively new and understudied.
Where this research is happening
-
Seattle Children's Hospital
Seattle, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mcgarry, Meghan Elizabeth — Seattle Children's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Mcgarry, Meghan Elizabeth
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.