John Patrick Galvin, Jr, MD, MS, MPH

(April 24, 1974 — October 28, 2025)

Dr. John P. Galvin, Jr, 51, died suddenly of cardiac arrest at Northwestern Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois and leaves behind a legacy of kindness, creativity, love, humor, and enthusiasm for life. He was a devoted husband to Dr. Maria L. Colavincenzo for the past 17 years. He was a devoted father to three beautiful children: Lydia Jane, Eloise Rose, Patrick Francis (ages 9-14). He was a hematologist-oncologist and medical researcher who dedicated his career to advancing treatment for patients suffering from cancer. He touched many lives with his compassionate and empathetic care, innovative research, exemplary professionalism and mentorship. Outside of medicine, John always harnessed his unique and diverse talents to brighten the lives of anyone he knew. He was passionate about helping others to live their best possible lives, a constant source of encouragement and inspiration. In his large network of extended family and friends, John was simply “everything to everyone.” Those of us devastated by his premature passing are charged to carry on by his example, in selflessness dedication, with sincerest gratitude for the short but cherished years we had the privilege of coming to know him.

John was born and raised in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan by Patricia Rossi Galvin and the late Dr. John P. Galvin, where he developed his devotion to family, curiousity about nature and commitment to community outreach. As a 1992 scholar athlete graduate at Grosse Pointe North High School, John excelled in varsity swimming, track, and soccer. During high school, his interest in photography and nature continued to develop, especially growing up on Lake Saint Clair. From his parents’ love of sailing, John was a devoted son with his meticulous care for his Dad’s sailboat, Ishmael.

John graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1996 with double major of Pre-Medical Studies and English Literature, where he lived in Dillon Hall. John continued his love of learning with a Master of Science in Cell Biology in 2002 at Loyola University Chicago. His curiosity about science and concern for helping others led him to graduate with a MD/MPH joint degree with a concentration in Public Health Informatics from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago and School of Public Health in 2006. For residency, John and Maria were in New York City, where he completed a residency in Internal Medicine at The Mount Sinai Hospital at the Icahn School of Medicine. John then completed two fellowships at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in hematology/oncology and hematopoietic stem cell transplant, developing his clinical expertise in graft versus host disease (GVHD). After his fellowships, he served as an Assistant Professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and trained many fellows and residents. He published numerous manuscripts, mentored many trainees, and lectured widely.

John was a renowned physician, hematologist, and stem cell transplanter who dedicated his professional life to advocating for patients, leading innovative research and education. Most recently, John was the senior medical director for GVHD at Incyte Pharmaceuticals. He was also an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois College of Medicine where he focused on GVHD and using informatics to better describe economic burden and disparities of cancer care in the U.S. and in low-and-middle-income countries. As a senior medical director at Incyte, he supported medical affairs activities focused on graft versus host disease and lymphoma, but John had a profound impact across the organization and was integrated into multiple teams across Incyte. He served as a content expert, a voice of the community, and an educator. He led with kind demeanor and friendly authority, a willingness to listen to every point of view with a strong conviction of his views. He was highly regarded within the academic community for his collaborative spirit, expertise, and innovative thinking. Beyond his professional accolades John was loved for his friendship. He made time for everyone; to listen and to help in any way he could. For his patients, John was always there, just a text or call away, by their side as they faced the most difficult moments of their lives, profoundly empathetic to them and their families. For his own family and friends, John was constantly the go-to, on call for any medical issue, however minor or serious, from coughs and sprains to life-threatening cancer diagnoses. John was the one who took family to appointments, spoke with their physicians, stayed all night in the emergency room holding their hand. He inherently gave his all to help his patients and loved ones navigate life’s health challenges.

John and Maria met in 1999 at Northwestern University medical campus when both were doing research before medical school in adjacent laboratories. Maria’s micro-pipette needs famously led her to John, a science-based origin story they relished. Already bound to separate cities for medical school, Maria and John maintained a thriving long distance relationship until they reunited for residency training in NYC, marrying in 2008, returning to Chicago shortly thereafter to start a family. John cherished his Old Town Lincoln Park neighborhood, always living in the easternmost block of the city such that proximity to the park, zoo and lake were integral parts of his life. Through early morning jogs catching the sunrise over Lake Michigan, routine family visits to the Lincoln Park Zoo, and nightly strolls to observe beavers and other wildlife of the South Pond, John took joy in the wonders of urban nature and instilled this love in his family and friends.

John was an avid runner and athlete who completed over 35 marathons and over 25 Chicago triathlons, and moreover encouraged and inspired athleticism in others. With his mantra that “anyone can run a marathon,” he was thrilled to share detailed training advice and support, helping to make the daunting seem doable. He ran the Chicago marathon with Maria 14 times and supported all of his children completing the Chicago Kids’ triathlon yearly. He supported their interests in a range of sports from running, swimming and biking to soccer, field hockey, fencing, taekwondo, skiing and sailing. He was an avid sports fan, especially of his beloved Detroit and Notre Dame teams, a love which became a family affair including Lions game-day parties and family ballpark/stadium experiences.

John was the most dedicated father to his three children, Lydia, Eloise and Patrick. In addition to inspiring their love for sports and athleticism, he also inspired in them a love of nature, art and technology and the importance of community engagement. He thrilled in having the opportunity to witness natural wonders across the world with his family, pursuing formative experiences for them such as trekking glaciers in Alaska and Iceland, hiking tropical rainforests in Costa Rica, snorkeling in Hawaii and Grand Cayman, visiting national parks such as Acadia, Glacier, Olympic and Yellowstone. He made his home a science classroom with yearly caterpillar rearing and butterfly release, raising praying mantises, ants, roly-poly bugs, various fish, snails, hamsters, etc. Always conservation-minded, he encouraged their early engagement in ecology research efforts such as humane capture and labelling of Monarch butterflies to aid efforts tracking their migration. John procured his family’s first pets: beloved orange tabby duo Griffin and Grover and blue merle Australian Shephard Greta are surviving treasured family members who he loved and cared for dearly.

John shared Maria’s passion for food and music and relished the many opportunities for culinary adventures in Chicago. He enjoyed a night at the opera as much as Dead and Company concerts, and served as official disc jockey for family events, always knowing the right music for the moment to make people smile and dance. Birthdays and anniversaries were always a chance to explore a new restaurant’s tasting menu with wine pairings. The biweekly farmer’s market was always a source of a new delight whether an uncommon melon, perfect pawpaw or local persimmon, along the way offering his height to enable Maria’s mulberry foraging. He took this passion to a new level in developing productive urban gardens, including growing dozens of colorful tomato varieties on every deck, melon and squash gardens on the roof, the fruit of plants grown from seed in his office with loving care. He created and maintained a beautiful urban garden for his family including a large wall garden he filled with hundreds of flowering plants every year.

John cared deeply about having a positive impact on his community and cultivating talent in young learners. In 2003 while in medical school, as an Albert Schweitzer Foundation Fellow, John created the Early Exposures (EE) Program in partnership with The Chicago Youth Programs (CYP), a project initiated to promote a child’s inherent creativity and expression with photography. For 22 years, the EE program has worked with 3 CYP sites every summer. John, as founder and active director, believed that teaching photography to children as a creative skill and mode of expression will build resilience and improve academic performance and self-confidence.

John loved sharing his talents to help others and was the official handyman and first line of tech support for many households beyond his own. He was skilled in plumbing, replacing clogged pipes and leaky toilets, designing and installing irrigation systems for his extended family. He was skilled in electrical work, meticulously assembling and installing a Murano chandelier and numerous antique lighting fixtures in his late-1800s home as well as for other family members. He rented, maintained and stocked storage units for his extended family to assist with transitions and downsizing. He supported engagement with technology to connect his family, always the go-to for any extended family phone or computer issue. He had a passion for using his technical skills to preserve family memories, discovering and digitizing archival footage from family attics and scouring media archives, finding and preserving vintage mementos for the next generation. He even used technical skills to solve a criminal mystery related to theft and break-in of his in-laws’ home, saving the day when the police were at a loss.

John’s spirit brightened every gathering. He exemplified living life to its fullest and celebrating every possible occasion to the maximum. Every Halloween meant procuring and carving the biggest and best pumpkins; every Christmas meant a meticulously decorated 11½ foot tree going all the way to the ceiling; Christmas Eve meant a feast of at least seven fishes; Thanksgiving meant the turkey trot with silly themed hats followed by an oversized turkey and dozens of side dishes; Pride Day meant the whole family wore all rainbow gear and flags; game days were parties with team gear and lion costumes; every child’s birthday was like Christmas morning, coming downstairs to see the revealed theme and decorations; even pet birthdays and extended family birthdays necessitated dedicated celebrations. 

John was also the family member in charge of assembling fitting tributes for memorials and celebrations of life. He brought sensitivity and creativity to this task, always finding the perfect pictures and words to best represent what made a person unique and cherished, and it brought him joy that this work could promote pride and love for those who had passed. To do this now for John, to find the words to capture fully the beautiful person he was, the impact he had in this world, feels impossible.

John was simply the best son, brother, husband, father, friend that a person could have. He was brilliant, loving, and generous beyond words. He was compassionate, creative and dedicated in both his professional and personal life. He cared deeply about his family and friends as well as his work and patients and would do anything and everything to help anyone at any time. In a life cut short he yet seemingly did the work of dozens of men. John exemplified living life to its fullest, showing compassion and care for everyone he touched and will have a lasting impact on all of us.

John is survived by his beloved wife Maria; his three children: Lydia Jane, Eloise Rose, and Patrick Francis; his mother Patricia Rossi Galvin; his twin sister Julie; his sister Jennifer; his sister-in-laws Rita Colavincenzo (Simon Wilson); Lucy Colavincenzo (Nicholas Sandercock); brother-in-law John Colavincenzo (Bethany); father-in-law J..Philip Colavincenzo (Marian); late mother-in-law Patricia Colavincenzo; numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews. He was predeceased by his father Dr. John P. Galvin.

A celebration of life to honor John is planned for 2026 in Chicago, details forthcoming.

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