John Raymond Hobbs (17 April 1929 – 13 July 2008) was a professor who was at the forefront of the techniques of clinical immunology, protein biochemistry and bone marrow transplantation, specifically in child health.
Early life John Hobbs was born in Aldershot. He was the third son of four male children of a soldier's family. His family moved around considerably due to his father's career in the British Army. The family eventually settled in his father's home town of Plymouth in the county of Devon. During the Second World War, John, along with his three brothers Frederick, William and Dennis, were evacuated from blitz-torn Plymouth to Penzance. He left school at 16 and worked as a pathology laboratory assistant and did his National Service in Egypt with the British Army Medical Corps. After National Service, John used the money he had saved from his army sergeant's pay to put himself into Plymouth and Devonport Technical College where he achieved an External Inter.BSc within 9 months, gaining a state scholarship to study medicine, where he chose the Middlesex Hospital in London and won 7 prizes. From 1968–1996 Hobbs received 4 national prizes, 15 international awards and 4 honorary fellowships
Medicine
He specialised in Pathology and in 1963 was appointed consultant at Hammersmith Hospital, London. In 1970 he was appointed as Professor of Chemical Pathology at Westminster Medical School. In the early 1970s Professor Hobbs's Westminster team were doing ground breaking work. In 1970 the world's first successful intended stem cell transplant for a previously fatal human disease.Hobbs J.R.., Letter to British Medical journal., 7 December 1998: Bone marrow stem cell transplants (from alternative donors) and Leukaemia. In 1971 the first British Bone Marrow Transplant using bone marrow from a matching sibling.Yamamura, M., Newton, R.C.F.., James, D.C.O., Humble, J.G.., Butler, L.F.., Hobbs, J.R. Uncomplicated HL-A matched sibling bone marrow graft from combined immune deficiency.1972 British Medical Journal. 2, 265–269 In the following year a transplant was successful using the bone marrow from father to son.Hobbs, J.R.., Humble, J.G.., Anderson, I.M.., James, D.C.O., The elective treatment of graft-versus-host disease following a bone marrow graft from a father to a so with severe combined immunodeficiency. 1976 Postgraduate Medical Journal 52, (suppl.5) 90–94 In April 1973 Hobbs and his team were able to achieve the world's first bone marrow transplant using a matched but unrelated volunteer donor.Foroozanfar, H., Hobbs, J.R., Hugh-Jones, K., Humble, J.G., James, D.C.O., Selwyn, S., Watson, J.G., Yamamura, M. Bone marrow transplant from an unrelated donor for chronic granulomatous disease, 1977 Lancet I, 210–213Hugh-Jones, K., Selwyn, S., Riches, P. Who pioneered the use of alternative donors (and stem cells from peripheral blood) in bone marrow transplantation? Arch. Dis. Child., 1991, 66: 102 With the success of this procedure steps were taken by professor Hobbs's team to set up the world's first unrelated bone marrow donor register. The tissue typing specialist of the team, David James, was instrumental in the setting up and the administration of this ground breaking register which was later named after Anthony Nolan. Anthony Nolan Trust It established the future use of unrelated donors to patients, so far for over 10,000 people. This initiative was the blue print which would be copied around the world. The Westminster team completed 285 transplants before it and its specialist unit's sudden, unexpected, enforced closure, effectively in autumn of 1992. Tragically, this left a waiting list of children with virtually nowhere else in Britain to go for treatment of their genetic diseases and inborn errors. However, Hobbs had founded the COrrection of GEnetic diseases by Transplantation or COGENT movement, with a charitable trust which attracted £13 million 1971–2007. The remaining balance, with the assistance of the late Professor Anthony Oakhill, was used to create a new unit at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in the city of Bristol, and so allowing work to be continued. It is now headed by Colin Steward. Colin Steward, Bristol As for the children who were treated by Hobbs's bone marrow team at the Westminster hospital, most of these children now enjoy full lives as adults.
Passing on his Knowledge Hobbs became an enthusiastic and accomplished teacher and accepted invitations to lecture (over 30 endowed) in 58 different countries (in over half of Europe's medical schools, 25 in the US and over 30 of the Commonwealth universities). He was given the status of visiting professor on over 25 occasions and he contributed to many international meetings and committees. He was re-invited many times and Presidential status was awarded to him in 5 different scientific meetings. He acted as an advisor to Health Ministers in Russia, Poland, Uruguay, Hong Kong, China and Peru.
Throughout 30 years as a recognised teacher Hobbs encouraged his juniors. 134 university higher degrees were achieved by trainees for work completed within the departments he headed; 48 full university chairs have been awarded to such staff; 70 have become members or fellows of the royal College of Pathologists (including 18 non-medical); 12 scientific staff were helped to medical degrees; together with 42 students contemporary with his daughters.
Achievements In Protein biochemistry – proved females treated for iron deficiency achieved the male normal range for haemoglobin blood levels;Hobbs, J.R. Iron deficiency after partial gastrectomy, I Aetiology, II Treatment (1961) Gut, 2, 141–149 the preexisting 'normal' ranges for females were no longer acceptable. From monitoring the Myeloma Trials, the first to describe the natural history of myelomatosisHobbs, J.R., Paraproteins, benign or malignant? 1967 British Medical Journal., 4, 699–704 (citation classic 1986)Hobbs J.R., Immunocytoma o' mice an' men (1971) British Medical journal. 2, 67–72 and helped in 1971 to set up the Protein Reference Units which save the national health service £3 million each year. Hobbs retired as PRU chairman in 1994. Established the first non-invasive screening test of the newborn to detect those affected by cystic fibrosis 1968Hobbs, J.R. First meconium in the detection of fibrocystic disease of the pancreas, (1968) Protides of the Biol Fluids, 16, 517–524 As Chairman of the Expert Panel on Proteins of the International Federation of Clinical Chemists (1971–1979) created International standards for many serum proteins.Hobbs, J.R., Harboe, N., Alper, C., Johansson, B.G. The human serum standard IFCC 74/1. 1979 Clin. Chim. Acta 98, 179F-186F. Developed successful uses of human tumour markersHobbs, J.R., Melino, G, Riches, P. Successful uses of tumour markers in man. In 'Protides of the Biological Fluids' 31. ed. H. Peeters. (1984) Pergamon/Oxford, pp. 255–262 In Clinical Immunology, Standardised methods and reagents (some for WHO) to provide normal ranges from 12 weeks gestation to old age for caucasian populations Immunoglobolin levels.Hobbs, J.R. Immunoglobulins in clinical chemistry, Chapter in Advances in Clinical Chemistry, Vol. 14, Eds. O. Bodansky, A.L. Latner, Academic Press, N.Y. pp. 219–317 Responses to candida albicans.Foroozanfar, N., Yamamura, M. and Hobbs, J.R. Standardization of lymphocyte transformation to candida immunogen, (1974) Clin.Exp.Immunol. 16, 301–310 Complement activation.Versey, J.M.B., Slater, L., Hobbs, J.R. Activation of complement in relation to disease, (1975) J.Clin.Path. 28, Suppl. 6. 38–44 Mixed lymphocyte reactionYamamura, M., Nikbin, B., Hobbs, J.R. Standardisation of the mixed lymphocyte reaction (1976) Journal of Immunological Methods 10, 367–8 T-cell receptors.Hobbs, J.R., Malka, S., Byrom, N.A. Density and inducibility of T-cell receptors in relation to the age of the lymphocyte donor and the conditions of culture. Protides Biol. Fluids 25, 605–610Robinson, M., O’Donohue, J., Dadian, G., Wankowicz, A., Barltrop, B., Hobbs, J.R., An analysis of the normal ranges of lymphocyte subpopulations in children aged 5–13 years, Eur.J.Pediatr. 1996; 155: 535–539 Phagocyte function.Hobbs, J.R., Foroozanfar, N., Grohmann, Preci, H., Yegin, O. Deficienza fagocitarie(1984) La Clinica Terapeutica. 110: 367–373 First to fully describe IgA deficiency.Hobbs, J.R., Immune imbalance in dysgammaglobulinaemia, Type IV (now IgA deficiency) Lancet i1968 110–114 IgM deficiencyHobbs, J.R. IgM Deficiency (1975) Birth Defects: Original Article Series IX, 1, 112–6. Publ. Sinauer/Sunderland, Mass., U.S.A. selective deficiency to staphylococci.Monteil, M., Hobbs, J.R., Citron, K. Selective immunodeficiency affecting staphylococcal response, (1987) Lancet, ii, 880–883 Early to recognise a circulating subset of T-cells co-optable through Fc-receptors to become killer cells.Fakhri, O., Hobbs, J.R. Target cell death without added complement after cooperation of 7S-antibodies with non-immune lymphocytes. (1972) Nature New Biology 235, 177–178 Defined secondary deficiencies of B-cells>Hobbs, J.R. Secondary antibody deficiency,1968 Proc.R.Soc.Med. 61, 883–887 and T-cellsHobbs, J.R. Deficiencias de linfocitos T, (1980) Rev.Bras.Alerg.Imunop., 2, 243–248 and their possible treatmentsRiches, P.G., Hobbs, J.R. Mechanisms in secondary hypogammaglobulinaemia, (1979) J.Clin.Path, 32, Suppl. (Roy Coll Path) 13, 15–22Byrom, N.A., Hobbs, J.R., eds Thymic factor therapy, (1985) Serono Symposia Publications, Vol. 16: 457pp. Raven Press NY. predictable by cytofluorometryHobbs, J.R. Cytofluorometry to predict effects of biological response modifiers in Poulik D. et al. eds. 'Protides of the biological fluids' 1989; 36: 3–17