Yorkshire leads global study on diabetes risks

The team in Hull has been given 500,000 euros out of a 3m euro fund by the European Union and the Russian Federation and is the only British university taking part alongside 11 others worldwide.

Hull is the lead partner responsible for co-ordinating international recruitment and managing all the information being collected.

It also has special responsibility for screening for heart disease in patients with diabetes.

Partner university cities include St Petersburg, Berlin, Rome and Moscow.

In Hull, the grant will fund research nurses, doctors and equipment, and pay for project and information management.

Researchers will screen 4,000 patients with type 2 diabetes for undiagnosed heart problems.

They will be invited for screening at their GP surgery and have a simple new blood test.

Patients who test positive for heart problems will have further assessments and receive treatment to prevent heart problems progressing.

A further 200 healthy people who have reached retirement age and are willing to have a blood test and detailed heart check will also take part in the study.

Professor John Cleland, at the university's cardiology department, Postgraduate Medical Institute and Hull York Medical School, is a world leader in cardiovascular research and one of the international consortium leaders.

He said: "Currently, there is no clear information as to how many patients with type 2 diabetes have an undiagnosed heart problem.

"Some research estimates that 15 to 25 per cent of diabetic patients over the age of 55 may have some form of heart problem they are unaware of. Our research aims to provide a better indication of this.

"Early diagnosis and treatment can delay and prevent more serious problems developing and saves lives.

"On the other hand, a negative test is very reassuring.

"In addition, research has shown that in patients with serious heart disease, poor control of blood sugar levels is a major risk factor.

"If a patient has chronic heart failure their chance of dying jumps from five per cent a year to 35 per cent a year once blood sugar levels exceed a certain limit.

"This is why investigating the links between heart disease, heart failure and diabetes is so important."

As part of the study, 700 patients attending the heart care clinic at Castle Hill Hospital, near Hull, will be invited to have more detailed tests that will improve understanding of their heart failure and associated problems.

Overall, the international consortium, which is based in six countries, will enrol more than 2,000 patients with heart failure.

Professor Cleland added: "This significant study will provide important insights into the complex interaction between heart disease, diabetes, obesity and muscle-wasting and help to improve the management of heart disease and outcomes for patients."

The research is expected to be completed in early 2014.

Cannabis 'may hit cancer immunity'

Smoking cannabis may suppress the immune system and increase cancer risk, new research suggests.

The drug triggers the production of cells that weaken the body's resistance to cancer, scientists believe.

A study in the US found that cannabinoids – the active compounds in cannabis responsible for its effects on the brain – activated biological pathways to generate "massive numbers" of the cells, known as myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs).

MDSCs are special immune cells that act as a safety brake on the immune system.

They suppress immune responses to prevent them getting out of control, but in so doing are also thought to promote cancer growth. Cancer patients are known to have increased numbers of MDSCs.

The research is reported in the European Journal of Immunology.