(HALIFAX, N.S. – April 20, 2026) Groundbreaking and life-changing healthcare research, taking place at and through the QEII Health Sciences Centre, took the spotlight during the QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den this April.
Styled like the TV pitch competition Dragon’s Den, four of Nova Scotia Health’s brightest researchers took to the stage at the RBC Theatre inside the QEII’s Halifax Infirmary site to present their projects to more than 100 people, in hopes of receiving the Grand Innovation Award to fund the next stage of their research.
The winner of the $200,000 grand prize was Dr. Amy Trottier, assistant professor of hematology at Dalhousie University and the QEII. With her research focusing on hereditary blood cancers, Dr. Trottier’s winning pitch is set to transform the way blood cancer patients have genetic testing performed.
“This funding is going to be able to help so many people,” Dr. Trottier expressed after winning the 2026 QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den.
Dr. Trottier’s research is working to use a non-invasive way to test people for hereditary blood cancers: toenail clippings.
“For patients with blood cancer, we cannot use blood samples to do genetic testing, as their blood contains the cancer itself and cancer causes its own genetic changes. The current standard is to perform a skin biopsy. However, this is invasive, and it can result in pain, infection, or bleeding. To solve this problem, we've developed a non-invasive way of collecting hereditary genetic material, using a person's own nail clippings, which can easily be collected from anywhere in the province. This results in lower cost to the healthcare system and greater accessibility for patients — it will cut down on the testing time by a full month.”
The Innovation Den funding Dr. Trottier received will go towards funding new equipment that will ensure the highest quality genetic testing results, pay for DNA extractions and whole genome sequencing, as well as supporting the research staff working on this project.
New to the 2026 QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den was the People’s Choice Award—a $75,000 prize with the winner being determined by the donors who gave to make the funding possible. Dr. Abraham Nunes, a psychiatrist at the QEII, was chosen as the inaugural winner of this award, with his research diving into how to make a leading treatment for those with treatment-resistant depression more equitable.
“If you know somebody who's benefited from ketamine for their treatment-resistant depression or their trauma, it really is remarkable to see the impact it has on them.”
“We have been able to offer the treatment over the past few years. The problem is that most people who have treatment-resistant depression can't access it. The reason? It's expensive in the private system and only available intravenously in the public system through our Halifax clinic at the QEII. This makes it challenging for people outside the city to access and benefit from ketamine therapy.”
The funds Dr. Nune’s received will allow his research team to explore if offering a sublingual (under the tongue) tablet of the medication for treatment would be feasible in Nova Scotia.
Finalists Dr. John Sapp and Dr. Ivan Wong each received $5,000 for their research focused on cardiac arrest intervention and hip arthritis 3D-imaging.
QEII Foundation President and CEO Susan Mullin believes the event is a celebration of what’s possible when research, innovation, and generosity come together.
“The projects pitched during the QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den are grounded in rigorous research and clinical evidence, designed not just to generate new knowledge, but to translate that knowledge into care for patients right here, at and through the QEII. I’m very thankful to our donors and partners for their generosity and for believing in the power of research to transform health care.”
On April 16, 2026, the QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den took place at the QEII’s RBC Theatre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in partnership with Nova Scotia Health Research.
The 2026 QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den judge’s panel included:
- Dr. Karen Cross, CEO and Co-Founder, MIMOSA Diagnostics
- Don Grant, Managing Director, Cuna del Mar
- Christine Pound, Partner, Stewart McKelvey.
- Jeff Larsen, Assistant Vice-President of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Dalhousie University.
As part of its We Are campaign, the QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den awards are funded through its Innovation Catalyst Grant program, established with a $1-million gift from Susan Crocker and the late John Hunkin in 2023. The goal of their generosity was to transform healthcare innovation in Nova Scotia, challenging others to match their gift and double the annual impact to $200,000 to groundbreaking researchers.
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MEDIA INQUIRIES
For interviews with the Innovation Den winners or other key spokespeople, contact:
Alison Clements
alison.clements@qe2foundation.ca
902-719-7161
