Patients will benefit from the quicker scanning time

The scanner at Hope Hospital is the first of its kind in the world, the University of Manchester says.

It is hoped that the equipment - which has a 5.5 tonne magnet - will help researchers looking into cancer, strokes and mental illness.

Images of vessels in the brain, nerves and cartilage can also be created.

The scanner has been bought by the University of Manchester and was unveiled on Friday.

It will help us to unravel some of the mysteries of the brain Professor Colin Sibley University of Manchester

Research into brain tumours and cancers will be helped by giving scientists a clearer picture of how the disease grows.

It will also be used for looking into how the brain recovers after a stroke and how the brain works in patients who have schizophrenia.

Professor Colin Sibley, associate dean for research in the university's Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences, said: "This piece of equipment will help us to unravel some of the mysteries of the brain and how it works.

"For the first time we will be able to see how different parts of the brain communicate with each other and this will be invaluable to many different areas of our research."

The quick scanning time also means that more patients will be able to take advantage of the equipment.

Previously, severely ill people would have been unable to tolerate the longer scanning times involved.