Strangeways developed an interest in the pathology of
rheumatoid arthritis and in 1905 founded the Cambridge Research Hospital in order to study patients with this condition and related ones. Funded largely by Strangeways himself, noted doctors of his acquaintance, and donations from patients, the hospital began modestly with only six beds, and with research equipment located in renovated coal sheds. It closed briefly in 1908 due to lack of funding, but quickly reopened and moved to its current site in 1912 thanks to the support of
Otto Beit and to its temporary repurposing as a hospital for military officers in
World War I. The hospital returned to its research purpose in 1917. Later, in 1923, the clinical aspects of the laboratory's work were moved back to
St Bartholomew's Hospital so that the laboratory could focus on then-newly developing technologies in
tissue culture and
cell biology. Having learned about tissue culture techniques from
Alexis Carrel, Strangeways took great interest in the new field, including developing demonstrations of the technique for his lectures. After
University of Edinburgh zoology student
Honor Fell spent a summer working with him, he hired her as a research assistant; the utility of which was a controversial topic among scientists of the time. ==Personal life==