Patrons

Clare Balding MBE

Clare Balding, TV presenter and sports journalist, became a patron of the BTF in August 2010. Clare was treated for thyroid cancer in 2009 and kindly endorsed the most recent edition of our thyroid cancer booklet.

Clare says: ‘I would be very honoured to accept your invitation and would like to thank the Trustees for thinking of me. I am sure you are aware that my work is rather all-encompassing but I shall do what I can to help raise awareness of thyroid disorders and in doing so, to help those who are suffering'.

Jenny Pitman OBE

Jenny Pitman has been a patron of the BTF since 1998. Jenny is a former very successful national hunt racehorse trainer and author, winning the Grand National and twice winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup, as well as the Irish, Scottish and Welsh Nationals.

Jenny had personal experience of thyroid cancer in 1998 and has given an endorsement to the BTF booklet 'Thyroid Cancer: For Patients, By Patients' in which she wrote: 'Having read the information in the booklet I am very happy to recommend it and I am sure it will help you to understand the disease and your treatment'.

Josef Craig MBE

Josef Craig, who was born with cerebral palsy, is a retired British Paralympic swimmer. At only 15 years old he was the youngest male to win a gold medal in the men's 400m freestyle at the London 2012 Paralympic Games and smashed two world records on the way. 

This fantastic and inspirational achievement was despite the interruptions to his training caused by having been diagnosed and treated for Graves' disease. Josef says 'I am proud and honoured to become a patron of the BTF and I am more than willing to offer my support to such a brilliant cause.

Dr Petros Perros BSc, MBBS, MD, FRCPE 

Dr Petros Perros is Consultant Endocrinologist at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne. He qualified from Newcastle University and trained in Internal Medicine, Endocrinology and Diabetes in Newcastle, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

He has served as BTF Trustee and Medical Advisor. He was on the executive committee of the British Thyroid Association, Clinical convenor of Society for Endocrinology / British Thyroid Association Thyroid Network, member of Clinical Committee of the Society for Endocrinology, lead of the Society for Endocrinology Departmental Peer Review and past President of European Group on Graves Orbitopathy. He edited the British Thyroid Association guidelines on thyroid cancer and co-authored European guidelines on Graves’ orbitopathy.

His clinical and research interests include thyroid eye disease, other autoimmune thyroid diseases.

Lord Jamie Borwick of Hawkshead

Lord Jamie Borwick had Graves' disease some years ago and Thyroid Eye Disease as well, so when his thyroid misbehaved yet again, he had it removed in an operation in May 2011. Jamie lives in London with his wife Victoria and four children. Jamie is a businessman interested in charities, politics and travel. He is the Chairman of Federated Investments LLP.

Jamie joined the House of Lords in July 2013 where he was Conservative Party Whip and a member of the Services Select Committee.

Prof John H Lazarus MA MD FRCP FRCOG FACE

Prof John Lazarus was involved with Cardiff Medical School for most of his career. During this time he has provided the clinical thyroid service in addition to performing thyroid related research and was also much involved in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching. Initial thyroid research focused on metabolism of antithyroid drugs and then effects of lithium on thyroid gland function and physiology. Throughout his research career he has contributed many papers on iodine and iodine metabolism. He also investigated thyroid hormone action on mitochondria while a visiting scientist at Columbia University New York. He has supported the BTF for more than 30 years and served as a trustee for nine years. From 1996 to 2002 he was Secretary/Treasurer for The European Thyroid Association. 

He is a founder member of European Group on Graves Orbitopathy. He was regional coordinator for West and Central Europe for Iodine Global Network. In 2018 Prof Lazarus was elected a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales (LSW). He joined a group of over 400 distinguished men and women from all branches of learning. Election to fellowship is a public recognition of academic excellence.

Gay Search

Gay Search has been a patron of BTF since 2003. She was writer and broadcaster who has became one of the country’s best-known gardening presenters. Gay has wrote a number of best-selling gardening books.

Gay had a thyroidectomy and takes thyroxine daily. She was thrilled to be asked to be a patron says: 'I was delighted to accept since I am a great believer in patient support organisations - I think they can offer support, information and reassurance in a way that most professionals, however well-meaning, can't do in quite the same way. I certainly found the British Thyroid Foundation invaluable while I was making up my mind about a thyroidectomy'. 

Dr W Michael Tunbridge MA MD FRCP

Dr Tunbridge has been a BTF Patron since 2007. Dr Tunbridge trained at Cambridge and University College Hospital, London and qualified in medicine in 1964. After obtaining his MRCP, Dr Tunbridge found his interest in Diabetes and Endocrinology moving to the Royal Postgraduate Medical School at Hammersmith Hospital. 

He retired from his post in 2003 and from clinical practice in 2005. In 1991 Dr Tunbridge organised a meeting to mark the centenary of the publication of Murray's discovery of thyroxine and donated the proceeds (£1000) to the newly formed BTF and became one of the first trustees. Dr Tunbridge is 'honoured to accept the invitation to succeed Sir Richard Bayliss as patron of the British Thyroid Foundation'.