Division History

Dr. H. Dalton Jenkins was the first full-time Endocrinologist in the Department of Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine (1959-1968). He received his training in Endocrinology at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital of Harvard Medical School, under the supervision of Dr. George Thorn. Dr. Thorn trained a number of other notable Endocrinologists, including Drs. Peter Forsham (who later led a prestigious Endocrinology Division at the University of California San Francisco), Donald Frederickson and John Leutscher. Dr. Jenkins came from this group of excellent investigators who made major contributions to the knowledge of adrenal cortical physiology and functions as well as delineating the pathophysiology of a number of disorders of the adrenal glands.

Dr. Jenkins was a remarkable individual with a tremendous thirst for knowledge. He was an exceedingly gifted teacher and clinician and represented perhaps the finest in terms of clinical endocrinology in the United States. The first fellow trained under Dr. Jenkins was Dr Oren Gum. Soon there followed a succession of fellows, including Drs. Janet Schemmel, Don Brown and Helen Morris. Dr Gum ultimately pursued the field of Rheumatology and became head of the Rheumatology division of Tulane University in New Orleans. Drs. Schemmel and Brown pursued an active private practice in Endocrinology as well as carrying out teaching functions at the School of Medicine. Dr. Schemmel remained a Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCHSC. Dr. Morris became a member of the National Jewish Hospital staff and conducted research focusing on the field of prostaglandins, holding the academic rank of Associated Professor of Medicine at the University. Dr. Robert Jaffe trained under Dr. Jenkins and became Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of California in San Francisco. Outstanding individuals who came from other countries to take fellowship with Dr. Jenkins were Drs. Louis and Andre Dayer of Geneva, Switzerland.

While Dr. Jenkins was Head of the Division of Endocrinology, a number of notable advances occurred in the field. Drs. Berson and Yalow developed the radioimmunoassay technique for the measurement of polypeptide hormones. This enabled the field to advance remarkably, not only from the standpoint of better diagnosis of clinical disease but also by improving our capacity to understand the basic pathology of many endocrine disorders. Radioimmunoassays were developed for the measurement of insulin, growth hormone, glucagon, parathyroid hormone, ACTH and a host of other hormones that are secreted by various endocrine glands.

The Division of Endocrinology expanded in 1963 with the recruitment of Dr. Karl Sussman. Subsequently, Dr. Paul Beck, who had trained with Dr. William Daughaday at Washington University, St. Louis, joined the Division and greatly strengthened the clinical and research activities of the service.

As the number of practicing Endocrinologists increased and more sophisticated laboratory procedures became available, Endocrinology within the community underwent significant expansion. Among those who entered private practice in Colorado were Drs. John Watt, Ray Gutin, Howard Kerstein and Harold Birenboim. There was a considerable increase in endocrine expertise in Denver, and Endocrinologists were practicing in Boulder, Pueblo, Greeley and Colorado Springs. Endocrine disorders could be appropriately diagnosed and treated in many communities throughout Colorado as well as at the University medical center.

Dr. Jenkins left the School of Medicine in 1968 to set up a private laboratory to conduct specialized endocrine and other laboratory tests. Dr. Karl Sussman was appointed Head of the Division and remained in this position from 1968 until 1972. Under the aegis of Dr. Sussman, the Endocrine Division focused on performing both basic and clinical research in Endocrinology. Dr. Paul Beck, who had previously been involved with studies of the effect of pregnancy on various aspects of carbohydrate metabolism, was investigating the effects of oral contraceptive agents on carbohydrate metabolism and insulin secretion.

Drs. Sussman and Beck were joined by Dr. Fred Katz of Loyola University, who had a special interest in renin-aldosterone metabolism. Dr. Katz brought to the Medical Center expertise in sophisticated assays for studying the dynamics of aldosterone metabolism as well as being able to focus on hypertension and various disorders of renin-aldosterone metabolism. It was an exciting period in the Division of Endocrinology and the program trained such outstanding individuals as Dr. Nick Alsever of Pueblo and Dr. Mel Stjernholm of Boulder. These individuals contributed significantly to developing Endocrinology outside Denver and set up a major referral practice throughout the state. In addition, these two physicians maintained a strong academic orientation, writing book chapters and articles in major medical journals.

Dr. Fred Katz assumed the leadership of the Endocrinology Division in 1972 when Dr. Sussman was appointed Chief of Medicine at the Veterans Administration Medical Center. Dr. Katz contributed to the Division a strong orientation in general Endocrinology. While Dr. Katz was head of the Division, a number of fellows were trained in Endocrinology and ultimately entered private practice. New faculty appointed to the Division included Dr. Merrit Rudolph, who trained with Dr. Sidney Ingbar. Dr. Rudolph had a strong interest in thyroid disease and brought to the Medical Center in-depth knowledge in this area. Dr. Don S. Schalch came from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and had originally done his training with Drs. William Daughaday, David Kipnis and, subsequently, Dr. Seymour Reichlin. Dr. Schalch’s special interest was the pituitary gland, but also more broadly neuroendocrinology. He was responsible for the development of a number of immunoassays which were key to the advancement of knowledge in neuroendocrinology.

At this time the Division was quite effective; its five members were Drs. Katz, Rudolph, Schalch, Beck and Sussman. Fellows trained included Dr. Udo E. Heinrich, who became Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Heidelberg, West Germany; Philip Burstein, who was initially an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado and later went into private practice and eventually into industry; and Dr. John M. Lock, Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Massachusetts School of Medicine.

This was a period of transition, however, since Dr. Sussman was heavily committed to his duties at the VA Medical Center. Dr. Beck became the Associate Dean of Education in the School of Medicine and was no longer able to contribute in a major way to the Division of Endocrinology. However, Dr. Schalch continued to pursue the study of growth hormone and somatomedin metabolism. He was one of the leaders in this field, developing assays for measuring somatomedin and somatomedin-binding protein.

The Division underwent further transition when Dr. Katz left to enter the private practice of Endocrinology in Denver in 1976. There followed a period in which the Division was supervised by two acting heads, initially Dr. Sussman for a year (1976-77), followed by Dr. Schalch (1977-78). During this time, two notable Endocrinologists joined the General Medicine Department and worked also in the Endocrinology Practice, Dr. Richard L. Byyny (1977) and Dr. Mervyn Lifschitz (1978). Dr. Byyny later became Chancellor of the University of Colorado Boulder and Dr. Lifschitz went into private practice at Rose Medical Center in Denver.

Dr. Jerrold Olefsky was appointed Head of the Endocrinology Division in 1978, resulting in a tremendous upgrading and expansion of the Division. Dr. Olefsky recruited a number of new faculty members: Dr. Robert Eckel (1979), who came from the University of Washington with a special interest in studying diabetes and disorders of lipid metabolism; and Dr. Richard Robbins (1981), who was trained by Dr. Seymour Reichlin, and was interested in the study of neuroendocrinology, particularly somatostatin synthesis and release from brain cells and the control of the secretory process within the brain tissue. Dr. Kathryn Horwitz (PhD) from the University of Texas at San Antonio also joined the faculty (1979), specializing in the study of estrogen and progesterone receptors in various tumor tissues, especially breast cancer.

Dr. Olefsky also brought to this institution expertise in the study of diabetes, particularly focusing on the action of insulin and delineation of the role of insulin receptors in modulating insulin action. Among the outstanding individuals recruited during his tenure, in addition to Dr. Eckel and Dr. Robbins, included Drs. Orville Kolterman (MD), Theodore Ciraldi (PhD), Stephen Marshall (PhD), Boris Draznin (MD, PhD; 1980), Paulos Berhanu (MD; 1981) and Fred D. Hofeldt (MD; 1984). A tremendous amount of creative and innovative research was undertaken during this exciting and productive period. Other trainees and faculty included Drs. Robert Henry; Masashi Kobayashi, who subsequently went to Shiga Medical School in Kyoto, Japan; Mel Prince, who subsequently went to University of Texas Medical School Galveston; and Stuart Gray, who became Senior Registrar, Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, Scotland. Dr. Timothy Garvey later became the Head of Endocrinology at the Medical University of South Carolina and then the Head of the Metabolism at the University of Alabama Birmingham. Dr. Mervyn Lifschitz was the Endocrinology and Diabetes Practice Director during these years.

The Endocrinology Division developed a degree of sophistication in both clinical care and research, ranking it consistently as one of the best in the nation. Dr. Olefsky received numerous honors and awards for his outstanding contributions to diabetes research. He served as President of the American Federation for Clinical Research, a very prestigious position. Dr. Sussman soon thereafter became the President of the American Diabetes Association (ADA). In 1983, Dr. Olefsky accepted an appointment at the University of California San Diego; Drs. Kolterman, Marshall and Henry accompanied him to UCSD. Dr. Robert Eckel assumed temporary leadership of the Division as Acting Division Head (1983-1985).

[Source for the preceding section: History of the Department of Medicine, 1933-1985; Edited by: Gordon Meiklejohn MD and Charley J Smyth MD; printed by Intermountain Color, Denver, CO 1985; pages 85-90]

Dr. E. Chester Ridgway was appointed Head of the Division of Endocrinology on July 1, 1985 and later became the Frederic Hamilton Professor of Medicine. Dr. Ridgway attended Medical School at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, receiving his MD in 1968. He then did his Internal Medicine internship and residency at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He subsequently did his Endocrinology Fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, where he trained under Dr Farah Maloof. He later became Director of the Thyroid Unit at Massachusetts General and a national and international leader in the field of thyroid gland disorders, including hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer. His studies of the regulation of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) secretion to control the thyroid gland resulted in very significant advances in the understanding of thyroid physiology and thyroid disease. His dynamic research resulted in numerous research grants from the National Institutes of Health and the publication of over 200 manuscripts in peer-reviewed medical and scientific literature, over 50 books and book chapters, and numerous invited national and international lectureships.

Dr. Ridgway was honored by being elected and serving as President of the American Thyroid Association (1996-1997) and President of the Endocrine Society (2003-2004). Throughout his career, he received many prestigious awards, including the following: American Thyroid Association (ATA) Distinguished Service Award (1999), ATA Paul Starr Award and Lectureship (2003), ATA John B Stanbury Thyroid Pathophysiology Medal (2008), Endocrine Society Robert H Williams Distinguished Service Award (2009) and the ATA Lewis E Braverman Distinguished Lectureship Award (2011). At the University of Colorado, he received the Joseph Addison Sewall Award in 2003 and the University’s highest honor, Distinguished Professor of Medicine, in 2011.

Under Dr. Ridgway’s leadership, the Endocrinology Division expanded further and became much more diverse with the recruitment of additional physician scientists to the faculty, including Drs. Arthur Gutierrez-Hartman (1985),  Margaret Wierman (1987), Dan Bessesen (1990), Virginia Sarapura (1990), Jane Reusch (1992), John Merenich (1992-1996; Practice Director), Bryan Haugen (1993), Cheryl Pickett (1994), Lisa Kosmiski (1995), Michael McDermott (Practice Director, 1997), William Troy Donahoo (1997), Holly (Thompson) Wyatt (1998), Marc Cornier (1999), Whitney Woodmansee (1999), Diana Dills (1999), Leigh (Kish) Perreault (2001), Linda Barbour (2002), Carol Zapalowski  (2002), Cecilia Low Wang (2003), Warren Capell (2003), Katherine Weber (2004), Janice Kerr (2006), Victoria Catenacci (2006), Rocio Periera (2006), Micol Rothman (2006), Joshua Klopper (2006), Irene Schauer (2006), James Falko (2006) and Jennifer Janssen (2007), Paul MacLean (2001) and Advanced Practice Providers (APP) Erin Meyerhoff NP (2003) and Joanna Gibbs PA (2005).

Drs. Berhanu, Dills, Picket and Zapalowski eventually left the Division for pharmaceutical or medical device companies. Drs. Merenich, Donahoo, Weber and Klopper left CU to work at Kaiser Permanente in Denver and Dr. Janssen left to work at National Jewish Hospital in Denver. Dr. Donahoo later left Kaiser to become faculty member at the University of Florida. Dr Woodmansee briefly did research in the pharmaceutical industry and then successively became a faculty member successively at Harvard Medical School (Peter Bent Brigham Hospital), Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville), and later the University of Florida (2019). PhD faculty added to the Division during Dr. Ridgway’s tenure included Drs. William Wood and David Gordon, who made significant discoveries in the molecular biology of TSH subunit gene expression and regulation in the pituitary gland. The Ridgway research group also elucidated the precise cell cycle pathways associated with thyroid hormone control of thyrotrope cell growth.

Dr. Robert Eckel served as the President of the National Association for the Study of Obesity (NASO), 1995-1996, and was President, American Heart Association, 2005-2006. Dr. Eckel then became the Charles A. Boettcher Endowed Chair in Atherosclerosis. Dr. Kathryn Horwitz served as President of The Endocrine Society, 1998-1999. Dr. Horwitz was honored by being selected as a Distinguished Professor of Medicine in 2004. Dr. Jane Reusch was President of the American Federation for Clinical Research, 2002-2003.

Fitzsimons Army Medical Center was established in 1918 as Army General Hospital 21 and was renamed in 1920 after Lt. William T. Fitzsimons MD, the first US Army Officer to die in World War I. Numerous service members served with distinction at Fitzsimons until it closed in 1997. Endocrinologists from Fitzsimons and CU had close clinical and research collaborations during that time. In 2001, the University of Colorado Hospital moved to the Fitzsimons site, renamed the Anschutz Medical Campus. The CU Endocrinology and Diabetes Practice moved to the Anschutz Outpatient Pavilion in Aurora on April 16, 2001. The Division offices and research space moved to the Anschutz Campus in April 2003 and located in Research Building 1 South.

Dr. Ridgway stepped down as Division Head and became Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs for the University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2007, but he remained active in the Endocrinology Division. In the summer of 2014, Dr. Ridgway was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, a disease that also afflicted his sister, and he passed away on July 31, 2014, at age 72. An endowed fellowship was established in his name to support future fellowship training needs. A memorial garden was dedicated to him on the south-east corner of the old Fitzsimons Army Hospital (Building 500) as a tribute to his contributions to CU and his love of gardening.

Dr. Bryan R. Haugen was appointed Head of the Division of Endocrinology on August 1, 2007 and became the Mary Rossick Kern and Jerome H. Kern Chair in Endocrine Neoplasms Research. Dr. Haugen attended Mayo Medical School, receiving his MD in 1987. His Internal Medicine internship and residency were at the University of Colorado, 1987-1990. His Endocrinology Fellowship at the University of Colorado (1990-1993) was under the mentorship of Dr. E. Chester Ridgway. His research and clinical expertise focuses on the causes and treatment of thyroid cancer. He is acknowledged nationally and internationally for his scientific contributions in this field. His insightful research has resulted in multiple research grants from the National Institutes of Health and the publication of numerous manuscripts in peer-reviewed medical and scientific literature, books and book chapters, and many invited national and international lectureships. He was the lead author on the American Thyroid Association Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Management of Thyroid Cancer in 2016. Dr. Haugen was honored by being elected and serving with distinction as the President of the American Thyroid Association (ATA) in 2012-2013. He also received numerous prestigious awards, including the ATA Paul Starr Award and Lectureship (2012), the Endocrine Society Edwin B Astwood Award Lecture (2012) and the ATA Sidney H. Ingbar Distinguished Lectureship Award (2019).

Faculty recruited to the Endocrinology Division under Dr. Haugen include Drs. Neda Rasouli (2009), Sarit Polsky (2011), Katja Kiseljak-Vassiliades (2012), Emily Schroeder (2012), Helen Lawler (2012), Mark Bridenstine (2013), Jennifer Morrison (2013), Elizabeth Thomas (2014), Nikita Pozdeyev (2015), Sarah Mayson (2015), Margaret Eagan (2015), Lauren Fishbein (2015), Christine Swanson (2016), Thomas Jensen (2016), David Saxon (2017), Julie Rifkin (2017), Sean Iwamoto (2018), Amanda La Greca (2019), Christie Turin-Moore (2021), Arwa El Sheikh (2021), and Palak Choksi (2021); APPs who joined the faculty included Stacey Seggelke CNS (2008), Matt Hawkins PA (2011), Mark Lindsay NP (2014), Chelsea Baker MA (2015), Beth Tupta NP (2016), Svitlana Crawley NP (2017), Jennifer Trujillo Vinh CNS (2017), Whitney Adair PA (2018), Boyd Hammond PA (2019), Claire Ingram PA (2019), Melissa Pfahl NP (2019), Michelle Huang PA (2021) and Tyler Strickland PA (2021). Dr Pozdeyev completed an Informatics Fellowship at the University of Washington and rejoined the faculty here in 2020. Stacey Seggelke and Svitlana Crawley earned their PhD in Nursing in 2018. Dr. Boris Draznin received an endowed chair (Celeste and Jack Grynberg Professor of Medicine). Dr. Aaron Michels (2010) accepted a research position at The Barbara Davis Center, where he conducts research on finding a cure for type 1 diabetes mellitus. Dr. Marybeth Allian-Sauer was appointed to a clinical position in the Cardiovascular Center Lipid Clinic; she left to take a position in the Harvard system in 2019. Dr. Schroeder moved to Kaiser Permanente in 2012 and then to private practice in Indiana.  Dr. Sarit Polsky moved to the Barbara Davis Center in 2015. PhD researchers who joined the Division during this time were Rebecca Schweppe PhD (2006) and Teri Hernandez RN, PhD. Dr. Mark Bridenstine left to work for Kaiser Permanente in Honolulu, HI, in 2015 and returned to Denver in private practice in 2018. Dr. Joshua Klopper and Dr. Jennifer Morrison left to work for Kaiser Permanente in Denver, CO, in 2016; Dr. Klopper left Kaiser to work for Veracyte (molecular diagnostics) in 2021. Dr. Kathryn Horwitz retired in 2018 after a distinguished research career and receiving the Distinguished Professor rank in 2018. Teri Hernandez was promoted to Dean of Research in the CU School of Nursing in 2019. Dr. Robert Eckel retired in 2019. Dr. Arthur Gutierrez-Hartman and Dr. Janice Kerr retired in 2020 and Dr. Margaret Eagan left to work for Virta Health in 2021. Dr. Jim Falko partly retired in June 2021 but continued part-time work in the Lipid Clinic in the UCH Cardiovascular Center (CVC) in 2021. Dr. David Saxon became Head of Endocrinology at the Denver VA Medical Center in July 2021 when Dr. Wierman, after a very distinguished career, stepped down from that position to continue her devoted research in pituitary physiology and disease. Dr. Marc Cornier left the University of Colorado in November 2021 to become the Director of Endocrinology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in November 2021. Under the leadership of Dr. Saxon, Dr. Lawler and Dr. McDermott, the Endocrinology Practice created the Diabetes Home and Remote Care (DHRC) Center in early 2020 to make diabetes care available virtually to more people throughout the state of Colorado.

During this time the Endocrinology Practice at University of Colorado Hospital continued to be recognized by US News and World Report as one of the top US hospitals for the management of diabetes and hormonal disorders; the Practice ranked #6 in the US in 2017 and 2018 and #10 in 2019. In addition to honors received by Dr. Ridgway (see above), Endocrinology Division members garnered numerous national awards from professional organizations: Endocrine Society Fred Conrad Koch Award (Dr. Kathryn Horwitz, 2010), Endocrine Society Sidney H Ingbar Distinguished Service Award (Dr. Margaret Wierman, 2009), Endocrine Society Distinguished Educator Award (Dr. Arthur Gutierrez-Hartman, 2009), Endocrine Society Distinguished Physician Award (Dr. Michael McDermott, 2013), ATA Woman of the Year (Dr. Virginia Sarapura, 2013), Endocrine Society Mentorship Award (Dr. Margaret Wierman, 2015), Endocrine Society Outstanding Clinical Investigator Award (Dr. Robert Eckel, 2016), President of The American Diabetes Association (Dr. Jane Reusch, 2018-2019), President of The American Diabetes Association (Dr. Robert Eckel, 2019-2020), and President of the International Society of Endocrinology (Dr. Margaret Wierman 2020-).

Dr. Margaret Wierman was awarded the very prestigious University of Colorado Joseph Addison Sewall Award in 2019. Faculty members also regularly recognized as the Top Endocrinologists in Denver by 5280 Magazine were Dr. Dan Bessesen, Dr. Michael McDermott, Dr. Micol Rothman, Dr. Ro Pereira and Dr. Margaret Wierman. University of Colorado Hospital awards included Physician of the Year (Dr. Michael McDermott 2004, 2012), Department of Medicine Rising Star (Dr. Micol Rothman 2013), Allied Health Professional Provider of the Year (Stacey Seggelke CNS 2012), Presidential Citation for Meritorious Service Award (Dr. Margaret Wierman 2014), Partners in Care (Dr. Bryan Haugen and Bev McLaughlin 2014), Allied Health Professional Provider of the Year (Erin Meyerhoff ANP 2015), Partners in Care (Certified Diabetes Education Team – Jenny Madrid RD, Jean Unger RN, Shannon Christen RD, Amy Vance RD, Kim Harmon RD 2015), Department of Medicine Innovator Award (Dr. Margaret Wierman 2017), University of Colorado Hospital Distinguished Service Award (Dr. Michael McDermott 2017), University of Colorado Hospital Extraordinary Service Award (Jenny Madrid RD CDE) 2019, and University of Colorado Hospital Partners in Care Award (Angela Grant) 2020. In 2019, the UCHealth Integrated Transgender Program (started in 2017), leadership under Dr. Micol Rothman and Dr. Sean Iwamoto, was also awarded a University of Colorado Diversity & Inclusive Excellence Grant, the 2019 University of Colorado Hospital Medical Staff Award for Excellence in Clinical Innovation, and the 2019 Ally Award from One Colorado. The Diabetes Home and Remote Care (DHRC) Center was awarded UCH Innovation Award.

As of October 2021, the Endocrinology Division consisted of 30 MD’s, 21 PhD’s, 3 MD/PhD’s, 1 RN/PhD, 15 Advanced Practice Providers [2 Certified Nurse Specialists (1 with a PhD), 5 Nurse Practitioners (1 with a PhD), and 8 Physician Assistants], 8 Certified Diabetes Education Specialists, 7 Endocrinology Fellows, 1 Diabetes Fellow, 1 Obesity Fellow, 7 Postdoctoral Fellows and 7 Graduate Students. By rank there were 21 Professors, 12 Associate Professors, 15 Assistant Professors, 7 Senior Instructors, and 13 Instructors. Division research support included 20 R level grants, 1 P level grant, 4 K level grants, one T32, 6 F awards and 6 other research grants and awards. By October 2021, 146 fellows had completed training in the CU Endocrinology Division and 7 were still in training.