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.

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 He specialised in Pathology and in 1963 was appointed consultant at Hammersmith Hospital, London.

[5][6] 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.

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.

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.

6, 348–61 144 Ezeoke, A., Ferguson, N, Fakhri, O, Hekkens, W and Hobbs, J.R. Antibodies in the sera of celiac patients which can co-opt K-cells to attack gluten-labelled targets (1974) in W Hekkens, A.S. Pena (eds) Coeliac Disease, Stenfert Kroese/Leiden, pp 176–188 174 Hobbs, J.R., Barrett, A, de Souza, I., Morgan, L., Raggatt, P., Salih, H., Selection of anti-hormonal therapy of some cancers (1975) in D Minzuni et al. (eds) Host Defense Against Cancer and Its Potentiation, Univ of Tokyo Press, Tokyo/Univ.