Action Research the medical charity celebrating its fiftieth anniversary this year, has agreed to fund almost £90,000 towards a new study focusing on a common but dangerous cause of chronic lung infections. The offending bacterium or bug can be difficult to overcome and is sometimes fatal, especially among people with the inherited disease.

Dr Tom Evans, a Consultant in Infectious Diseases at the Imperial College Londons Hammersmith campus, is leading the research.

 Cystic Fibrosis is a chronic debilitating disease which still leads to premature death of those affected, he explained. Although life expectancy is improving, many people will die in their teens and early twenties.

 Patients and families of those with Cystic Fibrosis suffer enormously and anything that can be done to help understand this common disease better is extremely important.

The study focuses on the bacterium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, known as Pa - the most common cause of such lung infections which affects more than 80% of people with Cystic Fibrosis.

Remarkably difficult to eradicate, it is also increasingly resistant to antibiotics. Lung infections caused by Pa are also problematic to treat among people with compromised immune systems, causing fatalities in more than half of affected Patients on intensive care units.

Found widely in natural and domestic environments, including soil and plants, as many as 50,000 people suffer from Pa at any one time in the UK. Typical symptoms include shortness of breath, a phlegm-like cough, fever, and sometimes wheezing.