Sponsor or institution
Clinical trials and research at VA Boston Health Care System
As of November 12, 2026, Find a Trial lists 119 NIH-funded research projects at this institution. Every study is explained in plain English. Data from ClinicalTrials.gov and NIH RePORTER, updated November 12, 2026.
- 119NIH research projects
NIH-funded research (newest 40 of 119)
Early-stage science funded by the US National Institutes of Health. Most of these projects don't enroll patients, but they show what is being worked on.
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Role of electrical synapses in sleep, wake, and sensory processing
Scientists want to understand how a brain protein that forms electrical connections affects sleep patterns and the way we process sounds.
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Understanding how PTSD affects self-control and brain function
Researchers are studying how PTSD changes the brain’s control over thoughts and actions, and how this might affect Veterans’ daily lives and responses to treatment.
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Expressive Writing to Help Sexual Minority Veterans with Depression and Anxiety
A brief writing program to help sexual minority veterans feel less depression and anxiety.
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Adjunctive Motivational Alcohol Help to Reduce IPV in Veterans
A brief alcohol-focused counseling session added to IPV treatment for veterans may help reduce alcohol problems and violent behavior toward partners.
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Traumatic Stress, Epigenetic Aging, and Heart Risk in Veterans
A large study using Veterans Affairs data to see if traumatic stress and faster biological aging relate to higher risk of stroke and heart disease.
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How Veterans move from a positive PTSD screen to VA mental health care
This project looks at the steps Veterans take after a positive PTSD screen to see how they get connected to VA mental health services.
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Family support to improve PTSD therapy for Veterans
This adds a short, two-session family program to standard PTSD therapy to help Veterans stay in treatment and feel better.
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Targeting GPCRs in the kidney’s primary cilium to help treat ADPKD
A doctor-scientist is researching how signaling in the kidney’s tiny cilia might be harnessed to slow or stop Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) in patients.
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A home-based STEP-Home workshop to help recently transitioning Veterans stay connected and safer
A pilot program using video-based STEP-Home workshops to help recently transitioning Veterans reintegrate, stay engaged with care, and reduce suicide risk.
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Rehabilitation to prevent disability and boost resilience for older Veterans
This project offers personalized rehabilitation programs to help older Veterans with chronic illnesses avoid disability and stay independent.
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Personalized Cognitive Processing Therapy to Improve Everyday Functioning after PTSD
This project personalizes Cognitive Processing Therapy to better target problems with daily life, relationships, and emotions in Veterans living with PTSD.
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Real-time computer-aided endoscopic diagnosis of colorectal polyps
A real-time AI tool is being developed to help doctors identify whether colorectal polyps are cancerous or benign during colonoscopy, with a focus on VA patients.
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Moral injury in veterans: how common it is and how it affects life
This project finds out how often U.S. veterans experience moral injury and how those experiences affect their mental health, behavior, and daily functioning.
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Oral theranostic platform to treat advanced bladder cancer
A translational project aims to develop an oral, cancer-targeted therapy that combines immune activation, imaging, and therapy for advanced bladder cancer to improve effectiveness and reduce side effects.
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Tech-guided walking plus Tai Chi to improve function for veterans with COPD and chronic pain
This program helps veterans with COPD and long-term muscle or joint pain use a web-based step program together with Tai Chi to move more and feel stronger.
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Better pulmonary hypertension care for Veterans across VA centers
This project will redesign VA pulmonary hypertension care so Veterans can get expert, coordinated treatment closer to home using a hub-and-spoke network and telehealth.
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Remote exercises for chronic pain in Parkinson's disease
This project offers remote physical and cognitive exercise programs to help reduce chronic pain in people with Parkinson's disease.
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Equitable Access to Buprenorphine for Cancer Pain in Veterans
A VA study will explore how to fairly bring buprenorphine, a safer pain medication, to Veterans with cancer who are not currently getting it.
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Learning Health System in VA ICUs improves care for Veterans
A VA study will measure how well ICUs use a learning health system to standardize care and improve outcomes for Veterans with life-threatening illnesses.
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Understanding why some Veterans don’t finish a Comprehensive TBI Checkup
This project aims to figure out why Post-9/11 Veterans who screen positive for mild traumatic brain injury don’t complete a Comprehensive TBI Evaluation and how to help them get the care they need.
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Neurofeedback for light sensitivity after mild traumatic brain injury
This project uses a gentle neurofeedback brain-stimulation method to try to reduce light sensitivity in people with mild traumatic brain injury.
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Improving End-of-Life Care for Veterans in Community Nursing Homes
This NIH grant aims to understand and improve the quality of hospice care for Veterans who receive end-of-life support in community nursing homes.
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Targeting CCL20 and CCR6 in Colorectal Cancer
A patient-focused look at a study exploring whether blocking a specific chemical signal (CCL20-CCR6) can slow colorectal cancer growth and spread.
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Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders Center for Translational Research
A VA research center is continuing its work to better understand traumatic brain injury and deployment-related stress to improve care for veterans.
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Targeting therapeutic resistance in glioblastoma (GBM)
A patient-facing description of a project to help people with glioblastoma by tackling drug resistance in brain tumor cells.
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Personalized walking and memory programs for older Veterans with slow gait and memory worries
This project is testing two programs—Functional Power Training and Music-Based Digital Therapy—to help older Veterans who walk slowly and have early memory complaints.
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Personalized Safety Plans for Veterans in Inpatient Psychiatry
A new program will personalize and rapidly deliver safety plans for veterans hospitalized for psychiatric care to reduce suicide risk after discharge.
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Predicting cancer risk in Veterans using genes and lifetime exposures
A VA research project aims to improve cancer screening and prevention for Veterans by combining genetic data with lifetime environmental exposures.
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Basal forebrain and brain networks in psychiatric disorders
This grant aims to understand how a brain region called the basal forebrain helps regulate thinking and attention in people with severe mental illness, with the goal of guiding new treatments.
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Chronic Post-amputation Pain: Identifying Risk Factors to Improve Care
A study of people who have had an amputation to learn what factors before, during, and after surgery are linked to chronic pain, with the goal of guiding better care.
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Adding brief family support to PTSD therapy for Veterans
Two short sessions will teach a family member how to support a Veteran starting CPT or PE to help reduce PTSD symptoms and keep the Veteran in therapy.
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Predictors of Opioid Use Disorder and Overdose in Post-9/11 Veterans
A study using machine learning to find factors that raise the risk of opioid use disorder and overdose in Post-9/11 veterans, and to understand how COVID-19 may affect that risk.
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Cell-specific plasticity pathways go wrong in Alzheimer's with amyloid buildup
This project looks at how Alzheimer's disease affects brain plasticity at the level of specific cell types, especially in veterans with higher risk due to TBI/PTSD, to identify targets that could help restore brain function.
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Pulmonary and systemic effects of deployment-related air pollution on veterans
This project will look at how exposure to air pollution during deployment may affect lung and overall health in veterans.
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Molecular tricks to boost how the body fights myeloma
Scientists are studying how long noncoding RNAs influence multiple myeloma and are testing new ideas to target these RNAs to help people with this cancer.
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LINC01133: a molecule that helps triple-negative breast cancer hide from the immune system
This project explores whether blocking a molecule called LINC01133 can reduce growth and immune hiding in triple-negative breast cancer, a form that often affects younger African and Latino women.
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How Alzheimer's genes and past trauma relate to early memory problems in veterans
This project looks at whether Alzheimer's-related genes plus combat, PTSD, or head injury are linked to early thinking and memory problems in older U.S. veterans.
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Early and accurate detection of Alzheimer's in Veterans using machine learning and simple tests
Researchers are developing a quick, affordable way to detect Alzheimer's disease in Veterans using computer analysis of existing cognitive tests and digital data from a clock drawing test.
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Suicide risk interventions: comparing how much therapy and brain markers predict outcomes
A study in veterans and active-duty service members compares how different amounts of therapy, plus brain-activity clues, affect future suicide risk.
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Pain care for veterans with end-stage kidney disease
This project looks at how changes in VA opioid policies have affected pain control and safety for veterans with end-stage kidney disease.
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