£5.3m funding research boost

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has awarded £5.3million to the Liverpool Clinical Research Facility (CRF) hosted at LUHFT to investigate new treatments for some of the most common diseases and health problems affecting people in the region.

The funding award recognises the significant impact the CRF has had over the last five years and allows the facility to expand across sites, working in collaboration with colleagues Clatterbridge Cancer Centre and Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital to address the needs of the local population, which has some of the highest rates of cancer and heart disease in the country.

The funding will also support research into neurology and neurodegenerative conditions, such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, and inflammatory conditions including asthma, arthritis, eczema and psoriasis. Other areas of work include the treatment of infectious diseases, including HIV and TB, as well as the development of new vaccines.

Dr Richard Fitzgerald, Consultant in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics and Director of the CRF (pictured), said: “This funding is fantastic news for patients in the region, who will get early access to new medicines and therapies for some of the most common diseases affecting our local population. It also demonstrates the NIHR’s confidence in Liverpool’s ability to deliver world-class research and development. Throughout the pandemic we have shown how Liverpool’s clinical and academic partners can work together for the common good and this approach will continue with the work we are now able to do as a result of this funding.”

LUHFT was among 28 Clinical Research Facilities to receive funding from the NIHR, which also awarded £2million to Alder Hey to extend its delivery of early stage clinical research.