An observational study in Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive, Emphysema and Bronchitis, Chronic, sponsored by Brigham and Women's Hospital. Active, not recruiting at 20 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 45 Years to 80 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-10-21.
Sponsored by Brigham and Women's Hospital · Observational
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a long-term lung disease that is often caused by cigarette smoking. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether certain genetic factors predispose some smokers to develop COPD more than others.
COPD is a disease in which the lung airways are damaged and partly obstructed, making it difficult to breathe. Millions of people in the United States have COPD, and it is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Symptoms include coughing, excess mucus production, shortness of breath, wheezing, and chest tightness. Emphysema and long-term bronchitis are the two most common manifestations of the disease. The most common risk factor for developing COPD is cigarette smoking; however, only 15% to 20% of smokers develop COPD in their lifetimes. It is not known why some smokers develop COPD and some do not, but certain genetic factors, combined with exposure to cigarette smoke, may increase the likelihood of developing COPD. This study will analyze DNA from current and former cigarette smokers to identify genetic factors and markers that may indicate a predisposition to developing COPD.
This study will enroll African-American and white cigarette smokers and former cigarette smokers both with and without COPD. Participants will attend one study visit during which they will complete questionnaires about lung symptoms, breathing difficulties, medical and family history, and quality of life. They will also undergo blood collection, a physical exam, lung function testing, and a walking test to measure endurance. Participants will undergo a high resolution computed tomography (CT) chest scan and a medical record review. Study researchers will contact participants up to four times a year for 15 years to collect follow-up medical information. Five-year, ten-year, and fifteen-year follow-up visits including a similar study protocol as the baseline visit will be performed on all available subjects.
209 studies on the registry are indexed under Bronchitis, Chronic; 14 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 10,718 is above the median of 988 across 46 observational studies indexed under Bronchitis, Chronic.
Browse Bronchitis, Chronic studies →Brigham and Women's Hospital is the lead sponsor of 1,267 studies on the registry; 228 are open to participants now.
Of its 116 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 65 (56%) have results posted.
Compared within Bronchitis, Chronic, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →
Particpants with COPD will include outpatient clinic patients, patients in registries, previous study participants, and COPD Foundation volunteers.
Participants without COPD will include spouses and friends of study participants with COPD and patients at primary care practices.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: long-term lung disease that makes it hard to breathe out, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
COPD
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: long-term lung disease that makes it hard to breathe out, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Non-Hispanic white participants with COPD
Non-Hispanic white participants with normal spirometry (do not have COPD)
African-American participants with COPD
African-American participants with normal spirometry (do not have COPD)
Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1)
Time frame: Measured at baseline
Emphysema, as shown on chest CT scan
Time frame: Measured at baseline
Airway wall thickness on chest CT scan
Time frame: Measured at baseline
COPD status (COPD participants versus control group participants)
Time frame: Measured at baseline
Plan to share: Yes — COPDGene phenotypic and genotypic data are available through dbGaP.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is active, not recruiting, as verified in Oct 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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