Attending Surgeon
Department of Head & Neck/Section of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
Professor of Otolaryngology/ Head and Neck Surgery
Professor of Neurosurgery
School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
University at Buffalo

Director, Head and Neck Surgical Fellowship Program
Roswell Park Cancer Institute

Dr. Wesley L. Hicks, Jr. joined the staff of Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) in 1991, as Attending Surgeon, Department of Head & Neck/Section of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. He earned his dental degree at Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN, and his medical degree at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He was a resident in Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery at the Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, New York Hospital - Cornell Medical Center, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, and completed a research fellowship studying the in vitro growth of respiratory epithelium at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He then completed fellowship training in Head & Neck Surgery at Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, CA.

Dr. Hicks is licensed by New York State and is certified by the National Board of Dental Examiners, the National Board of Medical Examiners and the American Board of Otolaryngology. He is a Professor of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery and Professor of Neurosurgery at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He is presently Director, Head and Neck Surgical Oncology Fellowship Program at RPCI.

Dr. Hicks' research interests focus on tissue engineering, wound healing, and mechanisms involved in wound repair.  His laboratory is studying novel work in bioengineered devices for enhanced wound repair,  the cellular microenvironment and tissue remodeling.

Dr. Hicks is a member of a numerous of professional organizations, including the National Medical Association, the National Dental Association, the Triologic Society, the American Medical Association, the American Dental Association, the American Society of Cell Biology, the American Academy of Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery, the American College of Surgeons, the American Head & Neck Society, the Society of Black Academic Surgeons. He is a Senior Examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology, and serves on the Editorial Board for the Journal Laryngoscope and Journal of Clinical Oncology. Currently, he is a member of the Board of Directors of HealthNow Inc./BlueCross BlueShield of New York State, WBFO the national public radio station in Buffalo, NY, and the Buffalo Federation of Neighborhood Centers.

Dr. Hicks has authored or co-authored more than 175 journal publications, book chapters and abstracts, and has been issued a number of patents related to his interest in tissue engineering and wound healing.