THE medical research charity Hope this week announced a grant of £10,000 for a new leukaemia research project in Salisbury.

The work will be done in the Wessex Regional Genetics research laboratory, at Salisbury District Hospital.

Dr Andrew Chase will lead the project, which aims to discover detailed chemical reactions in the blood in a range of leukaemias.

With the new knowledge, it would be possible to make advances in treatment and also to screen patients for other cancers.

The Wessex Regional Genetics Laboratory is a specialist unit that has a reputation for high-quality research in genetic disorders and diseases.

In this study, 90 samples from patients with different leukaemias will be analysed using the very latest scientific techniques, including robotics, to handle the samples.

For the majority of cases, the molecular details of the blood disorders are completely unknown. This is because scientists look for abnormalities in chromosomes but cannot find any in these patients.

However, the new analysis will look at specific target areas to home in on abnormalities in enzymes that can allow cancers to grow.

There are already drugs to treat these problems, so any new discoveries could lead to better treatments.

Sir Christopher Benson, a trustee of Hope who lives in Salisbury, said: "The Wessex Regional Genetics Laboratory is one of only two national reference genetics laboratories in the country. They are a hidden treasure of Salisbury, as many people do not know that we have this marvellous facility in our city.

"Their research is of a very high standard, so the trustees of Hope are delighted to support this important project.

"We rely on public donations for our work, all of which is aimed at improving lives by research on common diseases and illnesses."

This grant is the second £10,000 grant from the charity for research in Salisbury.

In 2003, Dr Andrew Sharp carried out research on hereditary breast and colorectal cancers.

He won the prize for the best postgraduate presentation at the University of Southampton for his work.