Meet our 2026 Innovation HSC Radiothon Giving Champion: Dr. Peter Nickerson
Dr. Peter Nickerson, FRCPC, FCAHS, Dean of the Max Rady College of Medicine at the University of Manitoba, and the 2026 Innovation HSC Radiothon Giving Champion. The Innovation HSC Radiothon Giving Champion provides a personal lead gift that inspires other HSC clinical leaders to follow suit.
Thanks to the tireless dedication of Dr. Peter Nickerson, FRCPC, FCAHS, countless Canadians are now living full lives—free from dialysis machines and the uncertainty that once came with waiting for a kidney transplant.
For over 30 years, Dr. Nickerson has been at the forefront of transplant medicine in Manitoba. A visionary clinician and researcher, he has spent his career pushing the boundaries to make kidney transplants more accessible and successful for patients not just here at home, but across the country.
“Much of my career has been spent blending clinical service with innovative research to make patient outcomes better,” explains Dr. Nickerson, who currently serves as Dean of the Max Rady College of Medicine at the University of Manitoba (UM).
Dr. Nickerson relocated to Winnipeg from Ottawa at the age of 19 and pursued his medical education at UM. He graduated as a nephrologist—a doctor specializing in kidney-related diseases—in 1991, before completing a Transplant Research Fellowship at Harvard Medical School. He returned to Winnipeg in 1995 and rejoined UM as a faculty member.
Upon his return, Dr. Nickerson launched a groundbreaking clinical research program focused on kidney transplant rejection and access. His work led to the creation of the Transplant Immunology Lab at the Health Sciences Centre, a specialized lab that became a national model for innovation.
“We were one of the first labs in the country to set up flow cross-matching,” he explains. “It’s a more precise method of checking compatibility between donors and recipients. We then took what was developed here and helped to standardize other labs across the country. Ensuring all the labs were able to get the same results allowed us to have the confidence to create a national system.”
Dr. Nickerson and his team then began advocating for investment in the creation of a nationwide kidney-sharing network. Through their efforts, Canadian Blood Services now operates the National Living Donation Program and the Kidney Paired Donation Program, which together have opened the door for thousands of Canadians to receive life-saving transplants from outside their home provinces.
“We have also developed a Highly Sensitized List, which is for patients whose antibodies react against many donors in the population,” he explains. “For these patients, many can be potentially sensitized against 95% or more of potential donors, so it becomes critical for them to have access to the entire donor pool in Canada, as opposed to just the donors who are in Manitoba. The national pool is at about 1,500 donors a year, which substantially increases the patient’s likelihood of finding a match.”
Over the course of his career, Dr. Nickerson has held several vital roles including Clinical Nephrologist and Medical Consultant at the Transplant Immunology Laboratory at Shared Health, Distinguished Professor of Internal Medicine and Immunology at UM, the Flynn Family Chair in Renal Transplant, Medical Advisor with Canadian Blood Services, and Medical Director of Transplant Manitoba.
While working with Transplant Manitoba, Dr. Nickerson in collaboration with Dr. Rush, was a key player in the establishment of HSC’s donor-funded Transplant Wellness Centre—an integrated facility that offers holistic, patient-centred care to transplant recipients.
“It was very rewarding to work alongside the HSC Foundation and the provincial government to create the Transplant Wellness Centre. It has increased capacity for more transplants, and substantially improved patient care,” he says.
Beyond his decades of pioneering work and advocacy, Dr. Nickerson is also a proud HSC Foundation donor and says he gives back as a way of investing in his workplace assuring it continues to grow, evolve, and save lives for generations to come.
“The Foundation supported my career and the transplant program. I donate to give back and as a way to make the whole system better,” Dr. Nickerson explains. “I see the HSC Foundation as playing a critical role in helping to bring the latest technology forward that we know will provide better care for patients.”
The Innovation HSC Radiothon Giving Champion provides a personal lead gift that inspires other HSC clinical leaders to follow suit.
