What Hjärt-Lungfonden does

Hjärt-Lungfonden is a Swedish non-profit foundation founded in 1904 (originally as Svenska Nationalföreningen mot tuberkulos, the Swedish National Association Against Tuberculosis) that now serves as Sweden's primary independent funder of heart, lung, and vascular research. The organization operates without state subsidies and is funded entirely by private and corporate donations, distributing approximately 350-524 million SEK annually in research grants awarded through a peer-reviewed scientific committee. Cardiovascular and lung diseases affect 2.2 million and 1.3 million Swedes respectively, and the foundation addresses this public health burden by financing independent research and disseminating evidence-based information to the general public.

The foundation's portfolio extends beyond grant-making into a public health education ecosystem: the AKUT-testet stroke recognition tool, Kunskapskollen knowledge tests, Sundkurs lifestyle education resource, Sunda recept recipe collection, the Forskning för hälsa magazine delivered to monthly donors, the Hjärt-LungPodden podcast, and printed disease information materials distributed to hospitals, clinics, and schools within Sweden. The flagship SCAPIS (Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study) program, supported by the foundation, involves 30,000 participants across multiple Swedish universities and hospitals and represents the country's largest population study on heart, lung, and vascular health.

The business model is built on a diversified donation stack: one-time online and phone gifts, monthly giving (månadsgivare), memorial gifts (minnesgåvor), testamentary bequests, and corporate donations that benefit from Swedish gift-tax deduction rules. Distribution runs through the website, a phone donation line, Swish mobile payments, bankgiro/plusgiro, and direct mail, with printed materials supplied to healthcare institutions. The foundation holds the Swedish 90-konto certification, which signals compliance with regulatory fundraising standards and is a trust signal to donors and corporates. The foundation is headquartered in Stockholm, employs 101-250 people, and operates exclusively within Sweden.

Name

Hjärt-Lungfonden

Legal name

Hjärt-Lungfonden

Website

https://hjart-lungfonden.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

1904

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hjärt-Lungfonden is a Swedish non-profit foundation founded in 1904 that funds independent heart, lung, and vascular research through private and corporate donations, distributing approximately 524 million SEK in annual grants while operating public health education programs for Swedish donors and patients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medical Research Charity

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA), Chronic Disease & Health Promotion Program Funding (HLAJALAJ)

Keywords

• Heart disease research funding
• Lung disease research funding
• Medical research grants
• Health charity fundraising
• Cardiovascular research foundation

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Private individual donations: Hjärt-Lungfonden receives donations from private individuals through one-time gifts, monthly giving programs (månadsgivare), memorial gifts (minnesgåvor), testamentary bequests, and direct website donations via Swish and card payments. These donations form the primary funding base.
2. Corporate donations: Companies can make donations to Hjärt-Lungfonden, including with tax reduction benefits under Swedish corporate gift deduction rules.
3. Membership / monthly giving: Monthly donors (månadsgivare) receive the magazine Forskning för hälsa (four issues per year) and a heart bracelet as a welcome gift, providing a recurring revenue stream.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hjärt-Lungfonden is a Swedish non-profit foundation that raises private donations and corporate contributions to fund independent heart, lung, and vascular research. It distributes approximately 524 million SEK annually in research grants and runs the SCAPIS population study. It also disseminates evidence-based patient and public health information through its website, publications, and printed materials distributed to Swedish healthcare institutions.

Product overview

Hjärt-Lungfonden operates as a non-profit research funding organization rather than a traditional product company. Its portfolio consists primarily of research funding programs (notably SCAPIS), health education resources (Sundkurs, Kunskapskollen, sunda recept), public health tools (AKUT-testet), and informational publications (Forskning för hälsa magazine, disease fact sheets, Effektrapporten). These offerings work together to advance heart and lung research while educating the Swedish public about cardiovascular and pulmonary health.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Månadsgivare (Monthly Giving Program) Recurring monthly donation subscription for private individuals in Sweden. Monthly donors (månadsgivare) receive the magazine Forskning för hälsa (four issues per year) and a heart bracelet as a welcome gift, and provide a stable recurring revenue stream for research funding.
• Corporate Donation Program Donation channel for companies supporting heart and lung research, with eligibility for tax deduction under Swedish corporate gift deduction rules. Corporate donors contribute to Hjärt-Lungfonden's annual research grant budget.
• Forskning för hälsa Magazine Quarterly publication (four issues per year) delivered to monthly donors, providing research-based health tips and the latest research news on heart and lung diseases.

Quantifiable outcome

• 524 million SEK distributed to research in 2025
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SCAPIS (Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimaging Study)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSCAPIS is Sweden's largest population study on heart, lung, and vascular health, supported by Hjärt-Lungfonden. It involves 30,000 participants and aims to identify risk factors and prevention strategies for cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases before they develop. The study is conducted at multiple Swedish universities and hospitals.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Lung Association: Major US voluntary health organization focused on lung disease research, education, and advocacy. Comparable mission focus on lung health; broader portfolio than Hjärt-Lungfonden's lung-only work.
• Wellcome Trust: Large global charitable foundation funding biomedical research. Comparable as an independent research funder, though Wellcome operates at vastly larger scale and primarily via endowment returns rather than active donation drives.
• American Heart Association: Largest US voluntary health organization focused on cardiovascular disease. Comparable mission and donation-based research funding, but at much larger scale and with broader public-health advocacy scope.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Large US philanthropic foundation funding health and healthcare research. Comparable as an independent health-research grantmaker, though operating via endowment rather than public donation drives.

Emerging players

• European Heart Network: Brussels-based alliance of national heart foundations across Europe. Comparable mission focus on cardiovascular research advocacy; provides a potential international-coordination peer for any future cross-border expansion by Hjärt-Lungfonden.

Direct peers

• Cancerfonden (Swedish Cancer Society): Sweden's primary independent cancer-research funding body, donation-funded and 90-konto certified. Directly comparable in funding model, regulatory status, and Swedish domestic fundraising competition.
• Asthma + Lung UK: UK charity funding lung disease research and patient support. Comparable in combining heart/lung research funding with public education and policy advocacy, donation-funded model.
• British Heart Foundation: UK's largest independent funder of cardiovascular research, distributing hundreds of millions of pounds annually via private donations. Directly comparable as a national, donation-funded heart-research foundation.

Regional players

• Barncancerfonden (Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation): Major Swedish disease-specific research foundation, donation-funded and 90-konto certified. Comparable as a Swedish national health-research grantmaker competing for the same donor wallet.
• Hjärnfonden (Swedish Brain Foundation): Swedish donation-funded foundation supporting brain and nervous-system research. Comparable as a domestic Swedish health-research grantmaker competing in the same donor market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Hjartlungfonden
• Facebookfacebook.com/DonorConnectLife
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hj-rt-lungfonden

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hjärt-Lungfonden