AnaCardio is a Stockholm-based deep tech scale-up developing novel drugs to treat heart failure based on the discovery of a new contractile mechanism. This clinical-stage company is revolutionizing heart failure treatment by creating the first safe way to strengthen the heart without the harmful side effects of conventional therapies.

We recently caught up with AnaCardio's CEO Patrik Strömberg to discuss their groundbreaking approach to heart failure treatment, the company's clinical progress, their experience building a world-class team, as well as the benefits of their membership as EIC Scaling Club's Cardiovascular group member. 

Beating stronger, not faster

For over 50 years, physicians and scientists have searched for ways to safely stimulate the heart. The fundamental problem, Patrik explains, has been that everything that stimulates the heart also stresses it, causing both short-term and long-term harm. 

Unlike conventional drugs that work through fight-or-flight stress mechanisms, AnaCardio's new approach both relieves stress from the heart while simultaneously improving contractility. This revolutionary concept centers on their discovery of a novel contractile mechanism involving the ghrelin signalling pathway.

“What we are developing is a safe contractile agent or safe inotrope that can be used in heart failure patients, specifically in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Our mission is to make the heart stronger, safely,” Patrik says. 

Professor Lars Lund, the company’s founder, generated the foundational data over a decade ago, but the company's operational phase began in 2021 with a small seed round and a licensing agreement with pharmaceutical company Helsinn. AnaCardio’s program had already been tested in healthy volunteers, allowing AnaCardio to reposition it for heart failure treatment.

The company's lead program, ACO1, represents the culmination of this research. AnaCardio recently announced the completion of enrollment for their Phase 2a Study in heart failure patients – a critical milestone that represents four years of preparation and execution. The data from this study will be available toward the end of 2025, marking a pivotal moment for both the company and the field of cardiology.

The people at the heart of the solution

AnaCardio's strength lies in its combination of world-class scientific expertise and seasoned pharmaceutical industry experience. The company operates with a lean but highly experienced team of nine employees supported by key consultants.

The company was founded by Professor Lars Lund, a renowned heart failure expert and key opinion leader on a global scale. As head of heart failure research at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Lund brings both academic credentials and extensive experience as a leading clinical trialist in the heart failure space. His basic research and hypothesis formed the foundation for AnaCardio's approach.

Patrik himself is an industry veteran with 20 years of experience at major pharmaceutical companies, including AstraZeneca, Biovitrum, and Sobi. This extensive background spans R&D roles, innovation management, corporate development, and ultimately serving as VP heading External Innovation, Search and Evaluation at Sobi. Now, he leads AnaCardio as CEO. 

The leadership team was recently further strengthened with the recruitment of Philipp Mathieu as Chief Financial Officer, bringing experience from investment banking, life science strategy, and biotech investing. Dr. Allan Gordon serves as Chief Medical Officer, contributing additional cardiology expertise, while Elin Rosendahl leads clinical development as Chief Development Officer, bringing exceptional capabilities in clinical operations.

“I think we have a very strong team to execute our ambitious development program.”

Challenges and milestones: Swimming against the current makes you stronger

When prompted about challenges, Patrik points to the typical challenges of therapeutic development – long clinical and regulatory timelines, potential delays, and increasing costs. The company has also navigated macroeconomic headwinds, including difficult fundraising environments and currency fluctuations.

However, AnaCardio's unique challenge stems from the historical failure of heart stimulation therapies.

“Our challenge is that, given that all previous ways of stimulating the heart have been shown to be harmful, there are preconceptions in the medical community about these types of drugs and an inherent concern around safety,” Patrik explains.

This reality has required AnaCardio to implement extensive safety measures and robust characterization protocols. The company monitors every heartbeat and documents comprehensive safety data for all patients. While this approach is immensely helpful for demonstrating their drug's safety, it also adds complexity to trial design and execution.

Despite these challenges, AnaCardio has successfully attracted high-quality investors. Key milestones include closing their Series A in 2022, initiating their Phase 1b/2a study in 2023, and completing the Phase 1b portion in late 2024. Throughout this period, the company has invested heavily in manufacturing readiness, CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls) programs, and additional proof-of-concept studies.

The company has also expanded geographically, opening an IND (Investigational New Drug application) in the US and conducting clinical pharmacology studies there. This year, AnaCardio anchored their full clinical program with both the FDA and EMA, setting the stage for their next major milestone.

Looking ahead, AnaCardio plans to raise a sizable Series B round to fund their Phase 2b study – a large trial involving several hundred patients across North America and Europe.

To new heights with EIC Scaling Club

AnaCardio views their admittance to the EIC Scaling Club as a valuable stamp of quality and a recognition of their potential. Patrik highlights the exclusive nature of the program and the networking opportunities it provides for learning and inspiration, as particularly valuable aspects, especially given AnaCardio’s preparations for their Series B. 

“I do think that one key component of the [EIC] Scaling Club is to build this infrastructure or network of investors to ensure that companies can scale and be funded for the future.”

About the EIC Scaling Club

The EIC Scaling Club is a curated community where 120+ European deep tech scale-ups with the potential to build world-class businesses and solve major global challenges come together with investors, corporate innovators and other industry stakeholders to spur growth.

The top 120+ European deep tech companies will be carefully selected from a pool of high-growth scale-ups that have benefitted from EIC financial schemes, other European and national innovation programmes, and beyond.

The EIC Scaling Club is an EIC-funded initiative run in partnership by Tech Tour, Bpifrance (EuroQuity), Hello Tomorrow, Tech.eu (Webrazzi), EurA and IESE Business School.

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