The head of the National Broadband Network (NBN) is donating his first year's salary of $2 million to medical research.

Mike Quigley says he is passionate about medical research, having benefited from it himself when he had leukemia.

The money will go towards a Neuroscience Research Australia project, looking into the use of fast internet connections to offer rehabilitation to stroke patients in remote areas.

Mr Quigley says the project is a great example of the improvement in healthcare delivery that the NBN could deliver.