Founded in 1989 by Sir David Weatherall, the institute focuses on furthering our understanding of clinical medicine at a molecular level.

A third of the researchers are clinically qualified and have joint posts with the departments at the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Research is also carried out to understand what happens when these processes are disrupted in diseases of the blood including leukaemia, myelodysplasia and thalassaemia.

[11] Research within the unit aims to increase our understanding of how the human immune system functions throughout life, particularly the response to infection and cancer.

[12] The unit works in collaboration with the NHS and industry, along with charities, including Wellcome and Cancer Research UK.