Charity chiefs have handed the Bradford Millennium Scanner Appeal a huge cash boost which will give patients access to the latest in hi-tech care.

A massive £41,000 is being given to the appeal by the Leeds-based National Heart Research Fund.

The gift will fund equipment to enable pictures of the heart to be taken which will be fitted to the MRI machine it is hoped to install at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

Specialists face problems imaging the heart because it is always moving, unlike other parts of the body.

But the device fitted to the scanner will enable high-speed snapshots to be taken, bringing a new dimension to the service for patients with coronary heart disease, heart muscle disorders and congenital heart problems.

Heart disease is the biggest cause of death in the district, with death rates three times the national average in some areas.

Doctors have hailed the donation as providing a major step forward in care which will put Bradford at the forefront of MRI developments.

It also means the appeal is now little more than £20,000 short of the magic £1million target.

Ros Jenkins, chief executive of the heart research fund, said it was the biggest grant ever given to Bradford by the charity and reflected the hard work by fundraisers from the area over the years.

"It isn't often that we make grants towards pieces of equipment but we did think this was so important to Bradford Royal Infirmary," she said.

Head of imaging at Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust, Dr Roger Lowe, said the investment would put the hospital on track to take advantage of hi-tech advances in the field in years to come.

The device would in essence prevent blurring of images by taking pictures more quickly of the moving heart.

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