European initiative to accelerate cardiovascular disease prevention

As Europe’s leading cause of death and disability, cardiovascular disease (CVD) affects more than 60 million people and costs an estimated €282 billion annually. While advances in AI, genomics, digital health and personalized medicine offer significant potential, their implementation is often hindered. SCALE-CVD  is a three year initiative that will bring policymakers, healthcare professionals, researchers, patients, industry and civil society together to guide future European investments and policy actions in cardiovascular health.  

SCALE-CVD will develop tools that can help decision-makers identify promising innovations and implement them in health care and public health programmes across Europe. The main outcome is a Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) that will help different actors on the European and national levels set long-term goals, guide research funding, and address technical and societal challenges, along with a roadmap for CVD prevention and early detection to improve public health. SCALE-CVD launches at a key moment for cardiovascular health in Europe, following the publication of the European Commission’s Safe Hearts Plan. 

Coordinated by RISE, the consortium brings together partners from Sweden, Türkiye, Romania, Spain, Denmark, Belgium and The Netherlands. Partners will map existing cardiovascular research, policy and innovation initiatives, examine regional differences, identify barriers and opportunities, and address equity considerations, including sex and gender dimensions and access disparities among vulnerable groups. 

In addition to the SRIA the project will establish a sustainable multi-stakeholder dialogue platform designed to enable collaboration across sectors, and develop consensus-based priorities for future research, innovation, policy, and implementation efforts. 

The goal of SCALE-CVD is to reduce inequalities and ensure innovations benefit all citizens, regardless of geography, socioeconomic background, age, sex, or digital literacy. By bringing together stakeholders from across Europe through consultations, workshops and expert dialogues, SCALE-CVD will support a coordinated European approach to cardiovascular health and help create more sustainable, resilient and equitable healthcare systems. 

About SCALE CVD 

SCALE CVD has been awarded three years of funding under the Horizon Europe “HORIZON-HLTH-2026-01-DISEASE-15 — Scaling up innovation in cardiovascular health”.  

Partners include: RISE (Research Institution of Sweden, coordinator). Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet. MG Sustainable Engineering AB (Sweden), Koç University (Türkiye), Senior Europa Sociedad Limitda, Kveloce (Spain) Universitatea de Medicina si Farmacie Carol Davila, Software Imagination & Vision S.R.L. (Romania), Syddansk Universitet (Denmark). European Heart Network (Belgium). Amsterdam University Medical Center (the Netherlands) 

Contact 

Coordinator: Marie Sjölinder, RISE, Phone: +46 70 776 1596, E-mail: marie.sjolinder@ri.se  

Project manager: Louise Lou, MG Sustainable Engineering AB, E-mail: louise@mgsust.com 

Communications: Josepine Fernow, Centre for Research Ethics & Bioethics, Uppsala University, Phone: +46 18 471 62 22;  E-mail: Josepine.fernow@uu.se  

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