Research and Academic Opportunities 

Research

All trainees on the training programme have the opportunity to undertake research, either as time out of programme (OOPR) leading to the submission of an MD or PhD thesis, or smaller projects alongside their clinical training. All trainees are encouraged to submit abstracts to conferences and present at local, national and international meetings and our trainees have a successful track record:

• British Thyroid Association Award; ‘A Novel, Missense, Mutation (P81R) in the TRHR gene in Congenital Central Hypothyroidism’, SfE BES meeting, Edinburgh, 2015.

• Highly commended poster prize; ‘A role for 11C-methionine PET/CT-MRI in the management of de novo and residual acromegaly’, SfE BES meeting, Edinburgh, 2015
• 2nd prize for oral presentation; ‘17 years an acromegalic’, 17th Clinicopathological Conference on Pituitary Disease, London, 2015.   
• Winner of Poster Competition. Resisting ‘resistance’ in the management of prolactinomas National Pituitary CPC, London, 2015.

Highly commended poster prize; ‘The effect of SSA on the HPT axis and peripheral thyroid hormone dependent tissues in patients with TSHoma’, SfE BES meeting, Liverpool, 2014.

• 1st prize for oral presentation; ‘A challenging case of microTSHoma’16th Clinicopathological Conference on Pituitary Disease, London, 2014.
• Presidential Poster Prize Competition Nomination;  Sleep disordered breathing in acromegaly revisited: novel insights from the largest study of polysomnography in de novo acromegaly ICE-ENDO, Chicago, 2014.
• Presidential Poster Prize Competition Nomination; 11C-metomidate PET-CT facilitates definitive diagnosis in patients with primary aldosteronism and ambiguous previous imaging: a sequential analysis of 61 cases, ICE-ENDO, Chicago, 2014.
• Highly Commended Poster Prize;  Disordered sleep architecture is a common finding in acromegaly Society for Endocrinology BES, Liverpool, 2014.
• Winner of Poster Competition;  Sibling apoplexy; lightning strikes twice National Pituitary CPC, London. 2014.                                                                                                                     
• 2nd prize for poster presentation; ‘When too much thyroxine isn’t enough’15th Clinicopathological Conference on Pituitary Disease, London. 2013.
• Travel Grant Award Winning Abstract.  Investigation and management of insulinoma; strategy and outcome in a single centre. UK and Ireland Neuroendocrine Tumour Society Meeting, London. 2013.
• 1st prize for oral presentation; ‘Refractory thyrotoxicosis: TSHoma or not?’14th Clinicopathological Conference on Pituitary Disease, London. 2012                                
• 3rd prize for oral presentation; ‘A complex case of Nelson’s syndrome’; 12th Clinicopathological Conference on Pituitary Disease, London. 2010

Academic Opportunities

There is a strong academic culture in the directorate of diabetes and endocrinology at NNUH. The department includes 3 substantive university chairs and an honorary chair in medicine at the Norwich Medical School/ UEA as well as an honorary Reader in Medicine and 6 honorary Senior Lecturers. Potential research opportunities include:

• Dr Frankie Swords has recently supervised trainee projects including a review of the management of thyrotoxicosis and radioactive iodine, investigation of spontaneous hypoglycaemia, amiodarone induced thyroid dysfunction, and effects of oestrogen route of administration on growth hormone dose requirements. She also contributes to national projects, currently examining the long term effects of Pituitary radiotherapy, the genetics of endocrine tumours with a particular focus on Pituitary and adrenal disease as well as contributing to the acromegaly database, the PATRO GH surveillance programme and 100,000 genome project.
• Prof Jeremy Turner’s principle research interest is the role of matrix remodelling and inflammatory signalling in adipose tissue dysfunction in obesity. He has previously secured funding from BHF and the Diabetes Research and Wellness charity to fund ACF and SpR research projects and has supervised 2 endocrine trainees’ PhDs. He has also previously supervised a clinical MD, 2 basic science PhDs and is currently supervising 2 PhD students in this field. He works with scientific collaborators across the Norwich Research Park including Dr Jelena Gavrilovic (BIO, UEA), Dr Sam Fountain (MED, UEA) and Prof Uli Mayer (BIO, UEA).
• Prof W Fraser: A major research interest exists in metabolic bone disease with particular emphasis on the role of hormonal regulation of bone metabolism. Hyper and hypoparathyroidism is being studied in detail particularly the role of vitamin D and its metabolites in the regulation of calcium metabolism and studies on the use of PTH replacement therapy in hypoparathyroidism including first in man studies of oral PTH replacement in hypoparathyroidism. http://www.uea.ac.uk/medicine/people/profile/w-fraser
• Prof Helen Murphy runs a diabetes pregnancy research programme which aims to improve the glucose control and infant health outcomes of pregnant women with diabetes. Her research interests include improving access to preconception care, developing novel continuous glucose monitoring and artificial pancreas technologies and the role of maternal dietary intake in gestational diabetes. https://www.uea.ac.uk/medicine/people/profile/helen-murphy
• Prof Mike Sampson leads one of the largest diabetes prevention studies globally, the “Norfolk Diabetes Prevention Programme” which is funded by a £1.2M NIHR programme grant and has screened over 10,000 East Anglian residents at high risk of future development of diabetes and is currently in follow up providing abundant opportunities for data analysis, health economic modelling and other Health Service Research academic opportunities for research fellows.
• Dr Swe Myint has an academic interest in transition services for teenagers and young adults with diabetes and has recently held a DUK project grant funding a large national university-student T1DM services survey and is currently working with DUK and other national bodies to inform future development of university diabetes clinical services.
• Dr Ketan Dhatariya supervises projects on many aspects of inpatient diabetes, diabetes and surgery and the diabetic foot.