Nordic Life Science 1
TOP STORIES ACQU I SITIONS // AGREEMENTS // COLLA
BORATIONS WOMEN 2 X FEMALE LEADERSHIP 1 Johan Franck, Professor, Karolinska Institutet, Gauti Jóhannesson, Chief Physician and Head of Research, St. Erik Eye Hospital, Sten Kjellström, Hospital Director, St. Erik Eye Hospital, and Carl-Johan Sundberg, Dean, Karolinska Institutet R&D New clinical center for vision research launched in Stockholm Sweden’s first clinical research center dedicated to ophthalmology has been established at St. Erik Eye Hospital in the Stockholm Region, in collaboration with Karolinska Institutet. THE CENTER combines specialist expertise, advanced imaging, and modern infrastructure, with access to large and diverse patient populations, enabling efficient and high-quality clinical studies. “This center is an important step forward for patients with eye diseases. It enables early access to new treatments while strengthening Sweden’s role in advancing future eye care,” says Sten Kjellström, Hospital Director, St. Erik Eye Hospital. BUS INESS DEAL CLINSTORAGE ACQUIRED BY RUBICON HEALTHCARE PARTNERS The existing management team will remain in place and reinvest in the company. ClinStorage will continue to operate under its existing brand, leadership, and operational structure. “THIS PARTNERSHIP enables us to accelerate our growth while staying true to what has made us successful – quality, flexibility and close customer collaboration,” says Jonas Östregård, CEO, ClinStorage. “Rubicon’s sector expertise and experience in develo14 | NORDICLIFESCIENCE.ORG ping growing healthcare companies make them an ideal partner for us. With their support, we can invest further in infrastructure, expand our services, and continue providing the secure, compliant, and responsive service our customers rely on.” NLS The facility provides end-to-end study support, including sample collection, data capture, and quality assurance, integrated within routine care to facilitate participation. “We have created a coordinated structure with clear processes from first contact to study completion. Our focus is rapid startup, high data quality, and smooth study execution,” says Gauti Jóhannesson, Chief Physician and Head of Research, St. Erik Eye Hospital. NLS WHITE PAPER: SYSTEMIC BARRIERS PREVENTING WOMEN FROM REACHING LEADERSHIP ROLES THE WHITE PAPER, by WiLD Denmark, WiLD Norway, and VILDA Sweden, is based on insights from 212 senior professionals across the Nordic region. It shows that three out of four female leaders have encountered barriers during their careers particularly at the point where expertise is expected to translate into formal authority. “The Nordic life science sector does not have a talent problem. It has a conversion problem. The system is not consistently turning qualified women into decisionmakers,” says Lene Gerlach, Chair, WiLD Denmark. 2 REPORT: STATE OF NORDIC WOMEN-FOUNDED STARTUPS 2025 THE REPORT, by Even Founders, has tracked 219 Nordic companies (co-)founded by women that raised a combined EUR 707 million in 2025, underscoring both the scale of the opportunity and the cost of continued underinvestment. Despite being the most credentialed cohort of founders, women-only teams remain systematically underpriced and are pushed into a cycle of grant dependency that weakens the signal chain needed for growth-stage investment. “The consequence of this is a closed loop. Investors source deals through founders they have already backed, and those founders refer people who resemble them,” says Ana Andonovska, Founder, Even Founders. NLS PHOTO KARIN DAHLSTRÖM