Overview
The Hickey Lab sits at the interface of engineering and immunology, using and developing systems immunology tools to investigate tissue structure in situ. We also use multiplexed imaging and computational techniques to characterize spatial cellular responses related to the effectiveness of anti-cancer cell or biomaterial therapies. John has received a number of awards for his work, including the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, ARCS Scholar, Siebel Scholar, NCI Postdoctoral Fellowship, and American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Current Duke Appointments & Affiliations
Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering
·
2024 - Present
Biomedical Engineering,
Pratt School of Engineering
Assistant Professor in Biostatistics & Bioinformatics
·
2024 - Present
Biostatistics & Bioinformatics, Division of Integrative Genomics,
Biostatistics & Bioinformatics
Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
·
2024 - Present
Duke Cancer Institute,
Institutes and Centers
Recent Scholarly Works
Tumor-infiltrating plasma cell profiling after PD-1 blockade reveals tumor-specific antibodies.
Journal article Cancer Cell · July 27, 2026 The role of tumor-infiltrating B cells (TIL-Bs) in shaping anti-tumor responses in the context of immune checkpoint blockade remains incompletely understood. Here, we interrogate the humoral response in resected lung tumors from patients with non-small cel ... Full text Link to item CiteMultiscale harmonization and semantic integration of biomedical data enable biological insights through immersive exploration.
Journal article bioRxiv · July 11, 2026 The Human Reference Atlas (HRA) enables multiscale data exploration and visualization. We present "HRA: Powers of Ten," a virtual reality (VR) application for integrating, harmonizing, and visualizing data within the HRA Organ Gallery. It enables immersive ... Full text Link to item CiteFigure S7 from Spatially Segregated Macrophage Populations Predict Distinct Outcomes in Colon Cancer
Other · June 17, 2026 <p>Thus Figure shows spatial enrichment of NLRP3+ macrophages with neutrophils in Crohn’s Disease, and immunostimulatory and immunosuppressive protein marker expression in NLRP3+ vs SPP1+ macrophages.</p> ... Full text CiteRecent Grants
Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Training Grant
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2026 - 2031Pathological B Cells: Novel Strategies to Prevent and Treat Chronic GVHD
ResearchCo Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2015 - 2031CAREER: Origins of Cellular Heterogeneity by Dynamically-linked Multiplexed Imaging
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2025 - 2030View All Grants
Education
Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine ·
2019
Ph.D.