Once reserved to the ultra rich longevity clinics or a product only doctors could prescribe to themselves, full-body scans have been gaining in popularity over the last couple of years. New providers and offerings have popped up, and consumer demand for them is rising sharply: last December, there were close to 70K Google searches on terms related to full-body scans. These scans are emerging as a brand new category in preventative medicine, and their democratization is under way — not without controversy.

Are full-body scans the future of preventative health & early disease screening? I’ve spent the last few months researching the field and talking to a number of specialized doctors — radiologists, functional health experts, and oncologists (as well as undergoing a whole body scan myself) about this emerging category. This article summarizes the current landscape, explores the scan’s pros and drawbacks, and discusses whether or not they are a silver bullet in preventative care.

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and this article is not medical advice. However, its medical review was conducted by Daryl Eber, MD — a board-certified fellowship trained Diagnostic Radiologist and leading expert in whole-body MRI and screening CT for accuracy and reliability.

The Democratization of Full-Body Scans

What’s a full-body scan? ChatGPT comes back with a decent answer: “Full-body scans are non-invasive imaging tests that are used to screen and detect any abnormalities or potential health risks in various organs and tissues throughout the body. They use advanced technologies, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and positron emission tomography (PET), to produce detailed images of the inside of the body.”

Until recently, these types of scans were relatively exclusive, offered in luxury longevity clinics and check up centers as part of extensive health check ups — therefore reserved to the few pockets of individuals who could afford such expensive, proactive care. But that’s changing: full-body scans are popping up everywhere, and are being made more broadly accessible.

Here are the few factors fueling their democratization:

Product Standardization

Full-body scans used to be designed very differently from one provider to the next — as they are composed of various factors such as the breadth of organs scanned, the type/quality of machines, time spent screening each organ, etc. However, recent entrants in the industry, such as Prenuvo and Ezra, have revolutionized the process by creating a standardized product that is both ...