Cacto Health raises DKK 3M ($457USD) to develop lymphedema detection device for breast cancer survivors
Cacto Health is a spin-out company from Aarhus University, in Denmark.
Cacto Health, a Danish startup focused on women's health innovation, has raised DKK 3 million (~$457K) to advance its home-monitoring solution for lymphedema - a painful, often overlooked complication of breast cancer treatment.
The round included funding from EIFO, Innovation Fund Denmark’s Innobooster programme, and several business angels. Cacto Health is a spin-out company from Aarhus University, in Denmark.
A chronic condition hiding in plain sight
One in five women who survive breast cancer will develop lymphedema, a chronic buildup of fluid that causes pain, swelling, and reduced mobility - often for life.
In Denmark alone, nearly 5,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, with around 900 developing lymphedema as a result of treatment such as lymph node removal and radiation.
Yet the condition remains poorly understood, frequently dismissed as a cosmetic issue.
“It’s tough to stand in front of a group of investors and explain why fluid in the arm matters. Many see it as cosmetic – but it’s about pain, mobility, mental well-being, and quality of life. It should be common sense,” said Ida Grønborg, CEO and co-founder of Cacto Health.
Grønborg, a researcher, PhD, and mother of three, founded Cacto in 2022 with industrial designer Mads Skak. The two met through the BioMedical Design program funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation and spent months inside hospitals, observing gaps in women’s healthcare.
Empowering earlier detection at home
Today, lymphedema is typically measured manually - often only once swelling is visible and the arm has already enlarged by at least 10%.
Cacto Health’s solution uses bioimpedance technology to catch earlier signs of fluid buildup. The portable device sends a low current through the arm to assess resistance, which changes with the amount of fluid present.
Designed for home use, the device is intended to be used starting immediately after breast cancer treatment and for around three years — the window when lymphedema risk is highest.
“This includes only a 5-minute per week monitoring session, putting on the device, starting a measurement on the app and viewing the results. In the app we also want to include patient information, myth busting, and guides for training the mobility of the arms," Grønborg told FutureFemHealth.
Importantly, the device is not meant to replace clinical diagnosis.
“We are not diagnosing as such since every patient with a suspicion of lymphedema needs to come through the clinic to get a diagnosis, but we aim to empower patients and enable earlier detection which can be very important for limiting the progression of lymphedema and giving more treatment options such as lymphedema reconstructive surgery,” she explained.
The DKK 3M raise will fund clinical validation of the technology and preparation for market entry.
“We created Cacto Health with women – for women. We listen to their realities and build upon their voices,” says Ida.
Leaving academia for impact
Grønborg left a promising research career to build something more tangible.
“As a woman, mother, and researcher, I had everything that looked good on paper – but I didn’t feel I was making enough of a difference. I wanted to go out and use my expertise to actually help people,” she said.
It hasn’t been an easy journey.
She had to learn accounting, VAT rules, and how to pitch to investors - all while building a company from scratch.
But she has no regrets.
“It’s uncertain and demanding, but it feels right. I get up every morning with the sense that we’re building something that can truly change lives. It’s worth it all.”