Newcastle University

Research Interests

Paediatric Endocrinology

Paediatric Endocrinology covers a broad range of diseases that can affect, directly or indirectly, all of the body’s organs. Some of these diseases in children typically reflect abnormalities in a single gene, for example hypophosphataemic rickets, whilst others have a more complex aetiology that may involve a number of genetic and environmental factors, for example congenital hypothyroidism and combined pituitary hormone deficiency.

We have been interested in a number of endocrine disorders in recent years but have a particular interest in thyroid disease in young people, diabetes as well as normal and abnormal growth.

We are closely involved in a National study of thyrotoxicosis management in young people, with the unit in Newcastle acting as repository for DNA from patients and their parents from around the UK. The trio cohort collected will be used as a resource to confirm or refute candidate SNPs currently coming out of genome-wide association studies.

We have also been interested in the epidemiology of diabetes in the North-East of England and were intrigued by a negative relationship between physique and age of onset of type 1 diabetes that has been identified on Teesside and other parts of the UK. We have therefore been looking to see if parental insulin sensitivity influences the age of onset of type 1 diabetes in the offspring and subsequent weight gain, insulin requirements and the development of cardiovascular risk factors.

Other research interests have also included the increasingly complex topic of appetite regulation and how size at birth and calorie intake relate to growth patterns in early and later life. Refining the UK screening programme for congenital hypothyroidism has also been a key objective of recent work.

Co-workers

Murthy Korada MB BS
Research Fellow

Nicky Leech MD
Consultant Physician and Diabetologist, RVI

Jackie O’Sullivan RSCN
Specialist nurse

• Srinivasan R, Harigopal S, Turner S, Cheetham T. Permanent and transient congenital hypothyroidism in preterm infants. Acta Paediatrica 2012, 101(4), e179–e182.
• Woodsford P, Cheetham T. Recruiting to clinical trials: hospital or home?. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2012, 97(1), 91.
• Gault EJ, Perry RJ, Cole TJ, Casey S, Paterson WF, Hindmarsh PC, Betts P, Dunger DB, Donaldson MD, British Society for Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes. Effect of oxandrolone and timing of pubertal induction on final height in Turner's syndrome: randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trial. BMJ 2011, 342, d1980.
• Blakey K, Johnson G, McNally R, Court S, Cheetham T. From protocol to progress: Establishing a registry of children and young people with diabetes in North East England and North Cumbria. In: Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health: IEA World Congress of Epidemiology. 2011, Edinburgh, UK: BMJ Group.
• Chan YM, Broder-Fingert S, Paraschos S, Lapatto R, Au M, Hughes V, Bianco SD, Min L, Plummer L, Cerrato F, De Guillebon A, Wu IH, Wahab F, Dwyer A, Kirsch S, Quinton R, Cheetham T, Ozata M, Ten S, Chanoine JP, Pitteloud N, Martin KA, Schiffmann R, Van der Kamp HJ, Nader S, Hall JE, Kaiser UB, Seminara SB. GnRH-deficient phenotypes in humans and mice with heterozygous variants in KISS1/Kiss1. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2011, 96(11), E1771-1781.
• Sinha A, Ball S, Jenkins A, Hale J, Cheetham T. Objective assessment of thirst recovery in patients with adipsic diabetes insipidus. Pituitary 2011, 14(4), 307-311.
• Pearce MS, McNally RJQ, Day J, Korada SM, Turner S, Cheetham TD. Space-time clustering of elevated thyroid stimulating hormone levels. European Journal of Epidemiology 2011, 26(5), 405-411.
• Bhopal S, Mann KD, Embleton N, Korada M, Cheetham TD, Pearce MS. The Influence of Early Growth on Bone Mineral Density at Age 9-14 Years in Children Born Preterm. In: Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease: 7th World Congress on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. 2011, Portland, Oregon, USA: Cambridge University Press.
• Sinha A, Avery P, Turner S, Bailey S, Cheetham T. Vitamin D Status in Paediatric Patients With Cancer. Pediatric Blood & Cancer 2011, 57(4), 594-598.
• Cheetham T. Congenital hypothyroidism: Managing the hinterland between fact and theory. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2010, 96, 205.
• Aminzadeh M, Kim H, Layman L, Cheetham T. Rarer syndromes characterized by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Frontiers of Hormone Research 2010, 39, 154-167.
• Wolny S, McFarland R, Chinnery P, Cheetham T. Abnormal growth in mitochondrial disease. Acta Paediatrica 2009,98 3 553-554.
• Owen CJ, Habeb A, Pearce SH, Wright M, Ichikawa S, Sorenson AH, Econs MJ, Cheetham TD. Discordance for X-Linked Hypophosphataemic Rickets in Identical Twin Girls. Hormone Research 2009, 71(4), 237-244.
• Abdullah N, Drummond P, Davies N, Al-Khalidi O, Barry R, Cheetham T. Short stature: Increased in children with severe learning disability. Child: Care, Health and Development 2009, 35, 266-70.
• McNally RJQ, Pollock R, Court S, Begon M, Cheetham TD. Space-time clustering analyses of type 1 diabetes in children from north-east England: support for an infectious aetiology?. In: Environment Health: Joint Environment and Human Health Programme/Annual Science Day Conference and Workshop. 2009, Birmingham, UK: BioMed Central Ltd.
• Korada SM, Pearce MS, Avis E, Turner S, Cheetham TD. TSH Levels in Relation to Gestation, Birth Weight and Sex. Hormone Research 2009,72 2 120-123.
• Barber JCK, Maloney VK, Huang S, Bunyan DJ, Cresswell L, Kinning E, Benson A, Cheetham T, Wyllie J, Lynch SA, Zwolinski S, Prescott L, Crow Y, Morgan R, Hobson E. 8p23.1 duplication syndrome; a novel genomic condition with unexpected complexity revealed by array CGH. European Journal of Human Genetics 2008, 16(1), 18-27.
• Korada SM, Pearce M, Avis E, Turner S, Wastell H, Kibirige M, Day J, Cheetham T. Lessons from a screening programme for congenital hypothyroidism: Rising incidence, an inverse relationship between birth-weight and TSH and the importance of threshold selection. Frontiers of Hormone Research 2008, 70(Supplement 1), 166.
• Korada SM, Pearce MS, Ward Platt MP, Avis E, Turner S, Wastell HJ, Cheetham TD. Repeat testing for congenital hypothyroidism in preterm infants: unnecessary with an appropriate TSH threshold. Archives of Diseases in Childhood: Fetal and Neonatal Edition 2008, 93(4), F286-F288.
• Johnstone HC, McNally RJQ, Cheetham TD. The impact of fasting and treatment omission on susceptibility to hypoglycaemia in children and adolescents with GH and cortisol insufficiency. Clinical Endocrinology 2008, 69(3), 436-442.
• Korada M, Kibirige M, Turner S, Day J, Johnstone H, Cheetham T. The implementation of revised guidelines and the performance of a screening programme for Congenital Hypothyroidism. Journal of Medical Screening 2008, 15(1), 5-8.
• O'Sullivan J, Iyer S, Taylor N, Cheetham T. Congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency is associated with a prolonged gestational age. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2007, 92(8), 690-692.
• Sutherland A, Davies JM, Owen CJ, Vaikkakara S, Walker C, Cheetham TD, James RA, Perros P, Donaldson PT, Cordell HJ, Quinton R, Pearce SHS. Genomic polymorphism at the interferon-induced helicase (IFIH1) locus contributes to Graves' disease susceptibility. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism 2007, 92(8), 3338-3341.
• James RJA, James A, Drewett RF, Cheetham TD. Milk intake and feeding behavior in the first week of life and its relationship to cord blood ghrelin, leptin, and insulin concentrations. Pediatric Research 2007, 62(6), 695-699.
• Adamson K, Cheetham T, Kendall-Taylor P, Seckl J, Pearce S. The role of the IDDM2 locus in the susceptibility of UK APS1 subjects to type 1 diabetes mellitus. International Journal of Immunogenetics 2007, 34(1), 17-21.
• Lee YS, Challis BG, Thompson DA, Yeo GSH, Keogh JM, Madonna ME, Wraight V, Sims M, Vatin V, Meyre D, Shield J, Burren C, Ibrahim Z, Cheetham T, Swift P, Blackwood A, Hung CCC, Wareham NJ, Froguel P, Millhauser GL, O'Rahilly S, Farooqi IS. A POMC variant implicates beta-melanocyte-stimulating hormone in the control of human energy balance. Cell Metabolism 2006, 3(2), 135-140.
• Sultan A, Velaga MR, Fleet M, Cheetham T. Cullen's sign and massive ovarian enlargement secondary to primary hypothyroidism in a patient with a normal FSH receptor. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2006, 91(6), 509-510.
• Owen CJ, Eden JA, Jennings CE, Wilson V, Cheetham TD, Pearce SHS. Genetic association studies of the FOXP3 gene in Graves' disease and autoimmune Addison's disease in the United Kingdom population. Journal of Molecular Endocrinology 2006, 37(1), 97-104.
• Dharmaraj P, Ball S, Johnstone H, Bailey S, Clifford SC, Hale J, Cheetham T. Hypercalcaemia in relapsed medulloblastoma 8 years post-diagnosis; evidence to support PTHrP production by medulloblastoma cells. Hormone Research 2006, 66(6), 268-272.
• Cheetham TD. Endocrine disorders. In:Rennie, J., ed. Roberton’s Textbook of Neonatology.Edinburgh, UK:Churchill Livingstone,2005, pp. chapter 35.2.
• Velaga MR, Wright C, Crofton PM, Allen L, Jennings CE, Cheetham TD. Macroorchidism in two unrelated prepubertal boys with a normal FSH receptor. Hormone Research 2005,64 1 3-8.
• Owen CJ, Cheetham TD, Pearce SHS. Polyglandular syndromes. In:Brook, C.G.D., Clayton, P., Brown, R., ed. Brook's Clinical Pediatric Endocrinology.Oxford, UK:Blackwell,2005, pp. 352-366.
• Abdullah N, Khawaja K, Hale J, Barrett AM, Cheetham TD. Primary hyperaldosteronism with normokalaemia secondary to an adrenal adenoma (Conn's syndrome) in a 12 year-old boy. Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology & Metabolism 2005, 18(2), 215-219.
• Brown K, Rodgers J, Johnstone H, Adams W, Clarke M, Gibson M, Cheetham T. Abnormal cognitive function in treated congenital hypopituitarism. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2004,89 9 827-830.
• Quinton R, Cheetham T. Aromatase inhibition in an adolescent male with gynaecomastia: Hyperactivation of the reproductive axis without compromise of final height. In: 12th International Congress of Endocrinology. 2004, Lisbon, Portugal: ICE Publishing.
• Carroll PV, Drake WM, Maher KT, Metcalfe K, Shaw NJ, Dunger DB, Cheetham TD, Camacho-Hubner C, Savage MO, Monson JP. Comparison of continuation or cessation of growth hormone (GH) therapy on body composition and metabolic status in adolescents with severe GH deficiency at completion of linear growth. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2004,89 8 3890-3895.
• Johnstone HC, Cheetham TD. GH and cortisol response to glucagon administration in short children. Hormone Research 2004,62 1 27-32.
• Khawaja K, Houlsby WT, Watson S, Bushby K, Cheetham T. Hypercalcaemia in infancy; A presenting feature of spinal muscular atrophy. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2004,89 4 384-385.
• Birrell G, Cheetham T. Juvenile thyrotoxicosis; can we do better?. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2004. ,89 8 745-750.
• James RJA, Drewett RF, Cheetham TD. Low cord ghrelin levels in term infants are associated with slow weight gain over the first 3 months of life. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2004,89 8 3847-3850.
• Waller S, Kurzawinski T, Spitz L, Thakker R, Cranston T, Pearce S, Cheetham T, van't Hoff WG. Neonatal severe hyperparathyroidism: genotype/phenotype correlation and the use of pamidronate as rescue therapy. European Journal of Pediatrics 2004,163 10 589-594.
• Barber TM, Cheetham T, Ball SG. X-linked hypopituitarism: clinical and biochemical features of a rare cause of short stature. In: Endocrine Abstracts: 23rd Joint Meeting of the British Endocrine Societies. 2004, Brighton, UK: BioScientifica Ltd.
• Drewett RF, James RJA, Cheetham TD. [abstract] Cord blood leptin and ghrelin, milk intake and weight gain in infants over the first week of life. Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology 2003, 21(3), 242.
• Allen LA, Achermann JC, Pakarinen P, Kotlar TJ, Huhtaniemi IT, Jameson JL, Cheetham TD, Ball SG. A novel loss of function mutation in exon 10 of the FSH receptor gene causing hypergonadotrophic hypogonadism: Clinical and molecular characteristics. Human Reproduction 2003,18 2 251-256.
• Birrell G, Lampe A, Richmond S, Bruce SN, Gecz J, Lower K, Wright M, Cheetham TD. Borjeson-Forssman-Lehmann syndrome and multiple pituitary hormone deficiency. Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism 2003,16 9 1295-1300.
• Farooqi IS, Keogh JM, Yeo GSH, Lank EJ, Cheetham T, O'Rahilly S. Clinical Spectrum of Obesity and Mutations in the Melanocortin 4 Receptor Gene. New England Journal of Medicine 2003, 348(12), 1085-1095.
• Owen CJ, Jennings CE, Imrie H, Lachaux A, Bridges NA, Cheetham TD, Pearce SHS. Mutational analysis of the FOXP3 gene and evidence for genetic heterogeneity in the immunodysregulation, polyendocrinopathy, enteropathy syndrome. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2003, 88(12), 6034-6039.
• Rahman MAS, Birrell G, Stewart H, Lucraft H, Cheetham TD. Successful radioiodine treatment in a 3 year old child with Graves' disease following antithyroid medication induced neutropenia. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2003,88 2 158-159.
• Drake WM, Carroll PV, Maher KT, Metcalfe KA, Camacho-Hubner C, Shaw NJ, Dunger DB, Cheetham TD, Savage MO, Monson JP. The Effect of Cessation of Growth Hormone (GH) Therapy on Bone Mineral Accretion in GH-Deficient Adolescents at the Completion of Linear Growth. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism 2003,88 4 1658-1663.
• Singh J, Pearce S, Moghal N, Cheetham TD. The investigation of hypocalcaemia and rickets. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2003,88 403-407.
• Cheetham TD, Bayliss PB. Diabetes insipidus in children. Pathophysiology diagnosis and management. Pediatric Drugs 2002, 4(12), 785-796.
• Smith D, Stringer MD, Wyatt J, O'Meara M, Davison S, Cheetham TD, McClean P. Orthotopic liver transplantation or acute liver failure secondary to autoimmune hepatitis in a child with autoimmune polyglandular syndrome type 1. Pediatric Transplantation 2002, 6(2), 166-170.
• Pearce SHS, Cheetham TD. Autoimmune polyendocrinopathy syndrome type 1: Treat with kid gloves. Clinical Endocrinology 2001, 54(4), 433-435.
• Deeb A, Robertson A, MacColl G, Bouloux PMG, Gibson M, Winyard PJD, Woolf AS, Moghal NE, Cheetham TD. Multicystic dysplastic kidney and Kallmann's syndrome: a new association?. Nephrology, Dialysis, Transplantation 2001, 16(6), 1170-1175.
• Deeb A, Robertson A, MacColl G, Bouloux P, Winyard PJD, Woolf AS, Moghal NE, Cheetham TD. Multicystic dysplastic kidney and X linked Kallmann syndrome. Nephrology, Dialysis, Transplantation 2001, 16(6), 1170-1175.
• Deeb A, Shenton BK, Redfern CPF, Cheetham TD, Ball SG. The effects of growth hormone releasing hormone and its receptor on somatotroph proliferation and cell cycle kinetics in vitro. In: 20th Joint Meeting of the British Endocrine Societies. 2001, Belfast, UK.
• Crowne EC, Samra JS, Cheetham T, Acerini CL, Watts A, Holly JMP, Dunger DB. The role of IGF-binding proteins in mediating the effects of recombinant human IGF-I on insulin requirements in type 1 diabetes mellitus. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2001, 86(8), 3686-3691.
• Acerini CL, Cheetham TD, Edge JA, Dunger DB. Both insulin sensitivity and insulin clearance in children and young adults with Type I (insulin-dependent) diabetes vary with growth hormone concentrations and with age. Diabetologia 2000, 43(1), 61-68.
• Farooqi IS, Yeo GSH, Keogh JM, Aminian S, Jebb SA, Butler G, Cheetham T, O'Rahilly S. Dominant and recessive inheritance of morbid obesity associated with melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency. Journal of Clinical Investigation 2000, 106(2), 271-279.
• Deeb AA, Bruce SN, Morris AAM, Cheetham TD. Infantile hypophosphatasia: disappointing results of treatment. Acta Paediatrica 2000, 89(6), 730-733.
• Adamson K, Kendall-Taylor P, Cheetham TD, Pearce SHS. Spectrum of mutations in the AIRE1 gene in UK APS1 (APECED) kindreds. In: JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS. 2000.
• Wright CM, Cheetham TD. The use of parental height to estimate target height allowing for regression to the mean. Archives of disease in childhood 1999, 81, 257-260.
• Pearce SHS, Cheetham TD, Imrie H, Vaidya BJ, Barnes ND, Bilous RW, Carr D, Meeran K, Shaw NJ, Smith CS, Toft AD, Williams G, Kendall-Taylor P. A common and recurrent 13-bp deletion in the autoimmune regulator gene in British kindreds with autoimmune polyendocrinopathy type 1. American Journal of Human Genetics 1998, 63(6), 1675-1684.