A full-body MRI can reveal hidden killers. Do we want to know?; The Washington Post, December 5, 2025

Dana Milbank, The Washington Post ; A full-body MRI can reveal hidden killers. Do we want to know?

"The new technology that powers these full-body MRIs — something called diffusion-weighted imaging (don’t ask me to explain) combined with the pattern recognition of artificial intelligence — has the potential to save our lives by revealing budding cancers, silent aneurysms and other hidden would-be killers before they become deadly.

But the scans cost $2,500 a pop and insurance won’t pay. Worse, for every cancer these MRIs find, they produce a slightly greater number of false positives that require a biopsy, with the potential for infection and bleeding and emotional distress. Even when the scans don’t produce a false positive, they almost always come up with some vague and disconcerting abnormality.

Like many emerging technologies, this one can improve our lives, make us miserable, or both. Nobody yet knows which it will be, because we’re the first humans to have the option of examining our innards with such clarity. Will we feel better after viewing our insides? Or will we become anxious about things we hadn’t even thought to worry about?"

Their DNA Hides a Warning, but They Don’t Want to Know What It Says; The New York Times, January 21, 2022

 Gina Kolata, The New York Times ; Their DNA Hides a Warning, but They Don’t Want to Know What It Says

"Benjamin Berkman, a bioethicist at the National Institutes of Health, said that, in his view, the benefits of telling participants about genetic findings that can be treated or prevented greatly outweighed the risk that the participants might be frightened or fail to follow up.

“These are important pieces of information that can be lifesaving,” he said.

But not all biobanks give subjects the chance to receive health warnings.

At Vanderbilt, Dr. Clayton said, she volunteered genetic information to a biobank whose participants have been de-identified — all names and other personal information are stripped from the data. It also has other protections to prevent individuals in the bank from being found. While she happily contributed to the research, Dr. Clayton said, she is glad her data can’t be traced and that no one will call her if they find something that may be worrying.

“I don’t want to know,” she said."