Essity acquires Kenvue's feminine care business in Brazil for $284M 🛒
Swedish hygiene and health company Essity has agreed to acquire Kenvue's feminine care business in Brazil - including the market-leading brands Carefree, Sempre Livre and o.b. - for $284M on a cash and debt-free basis. The deal includes brand ownership and related manufacturing equipment and is subject to regulatory approval in Brazil, with closure expected in Q2 2027. It follows Essity's acquisition of the same brands in North America from Edgewell Personal Care in February 2026, and cements its position as a market leader in feminine care across Latin America - the world's fourth-largest feminine care market.
“With this acquisition we establish a strong position in feminine care in Brazil and it marks another step in our strategy to grow in our most value-creating categories. Brazil represents a significant growth opportunity in hygiene and health, where we already hold a leading position in incontinence products.”
— Ulrika Kolsrud, President & CEO, Essity
Channel Medsystems raises $30M Series C to scale Cerene cryotherapy platform 💰
Channel Medsystems has reached $30M in its ongoing Series C, led by InnovaHealth Partners, to accelerate the commercial expansion of Cerene - a non-hormonal, incision-free endometrial cryotherapy treatment for heavy menstrual bleeding and dysmenorrhea. The 2.5-minute, office-based procedure requires no general anaesthesia and preserves the uterine cavity for future evaluation. Funding will expand the commercial team, deepen physician and patient awareness, and support ongoing clinical evidence generation.
“This Series C investment represents increasing investor confidence in our updated commercial strategy and the significant market opportunity that exists for our Cerene platform, This funding enables us to accelerate our commercial strategy and bring Cerene to more physicians and patients. We are encouraged by those in the investor community, and IHP in particular, who continue to recognize the significant opportunity in the women’s health sector to improve lives, and drive a significant return for all stakeholders.”
— Nelson Whistance, President & Chief Executive Officer, Channel Medsystems
TowerBrook Capital Partners takes strategic stake in Rael to scale holistic cycle care brand 🌸
Private equity firm TowerBrook has announced a strategic partnership with Rael, the Korean American-founded women's wellness brand stocked in 40,000+ retail doors across the US and Korea - including Target, Walmart, Ulta Beauty, CVS and Walgreens. No deal value was disclosed. Rael has held the number one position in sanitary pads on Amazon for six consecutive years and expanded from feminine care into skincare and hormonal wellness. Former Burt's Bees and Seventh Generation CEO John Replogle joins as Chair of the Board.
“We started Rael because we believed women deserved better choices in period care, and that belief led us to pioneer holistic cycle care. From our first conversation, TowerBrook understood the impact of our mission and believed in it as deeply as we do. Their track record of scaling founder-led brands while preserving their uniqueness makes them the ideal partner as we aim to serve more women around the world.”
— Yanghee Paik, CEO & Co-Founder, Rael
MiMARK raises €4.2M seed to bring non-invasive endometrial cancer and endometriosis diagnostics to market 🔬
Barcelona-based MiMARK Diagnostics, spun out of the Vall d'Hebron Institute of Research in 2021, has closed a €4.2M seed round - ranking in the 97th percentile of all-time health seed deals in Spain. Its lead product, GyLDEC, analyses proteins in uterine fluid collected via a minimally invasive pipelle device to identify endometrial cancer risk in post-menopausal women with abnormal bleeding, potentially sparing patients from more invasive biopsies. A second product, GyLDEndo, targets endometriosis via cervical swab with 48-hour results. MiMARK is now raising a further €8M to bring GyLDEC to market.
University of Aberdeen leads £2M NIHR trial of daily pill for heavy menstrual bleeding 🧬
A team from the Universities of Aberdeen and Edinburgh has been awarded just under £2M by the NIHR to run a 3.5-year clinical trial of relugolix combination therapy - a daily pill that temporarily pauses the menstrual cycle while including HRT to prevent menopausal side effects - as a treatment for heavy menstrual bleeding. One in three women is affected by HMB, with over half unable to carry out daily activities as a result. The trial will recruit 270 participants across NHS Grampian, Barts Health, Birmingham Women's and Children's, and The Lowdown.
"Many women face the difficult and debilitating effects of heavy menstrual bleeding. This trial will help determine whether this new treatment could be a more suitable option for them, and it has the potential to make a significant positive impact on their day-to-day lives. Investing in studies like this also forms a key part of our ongoing commitment to becoming a more inclusive funder of research."
— Professor Anthony Gordon, Director, NIHR's Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme
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