OXFORD is now the home of a state-of-the-art stroke and dementia centre.

The Wolfson Centre for the Prevention of Stroke and Dementia (CPSD) was officially opened today at the John Radcliffe hospital.

Charles Warlow, the neurologist who first developed stroke research in the UK, opened the CPSD.

The centre is the UK’s only purpose-built clinical research centre looking specifically at stroke and dementia, and will house about a quarter of all the UK’s stroke researchers.

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The CPSD will allow expansion of the previous Stroke Prevention Research Unit, which was already regarded as one of the most productive stroke research groups in the world.

Gavin Screaton, head of the University of Oxford’s Medical Sciences Division, said: “There are 1.2 million stroke survivors in the UK, and someone has a stroke here every five minutes.

“This new state-of-the-art centre represents a major step forward for stroke and vascular dementia research, not only in Oxford, but in the UK.

“Given the relatively large number of scientists and clinicians working here, the new expanded centre promises to keep Oxford at the forefront of research in this field, and ensure that we continue to deliver benefits for patients.”

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Dr Bruno Holthof, chief executive officer of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust added: “We are very privileged to see another leading medical research facility – and the UK’s first dedicated centre for stroke and dementia research – opening on the John Radcliffe site.”

Funding for the CPSD, and the new Wolfson Building, was provided by the Wolfson Foundation and the Wellcome Trust.

The Wolfson Building, which was designed by Oxford-based architects fjmt and built by contractor SDC, will also be home to researchers from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, which is investigating how the brain recovers after damage and how the brain processes pain.

Professor Peter Rothwell, founding director of the CPSD, said: “Stroke is as common as cancer or heart disease, but has received much less research funding in the past. More needs to be done to invest in stroke research, and the establishment of this centre is a positive step forward in this regard.”