Cystic fibrosis drug faces axe

A £30 MILLION study into finding a new treatment for cystic fibrosis is facing the axe.

Scientists at Edinburgh University are involved in the programme, which is understood to be on the verge of finding a "pioneering" treatment.

Researchers from London and Oxford worked with those in the Capital, as well as the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, but the scheme, which has run for ten years and involved 80 scientists, has run out of money.

Co-ordinator Professor Eric Alton said: "We have developed a drug. We have carried out tests on it. We have found that the drug works very well in many patients. But now we have to suspend operations because our money has run out."