Researchers have warned that brain scans paid for privately, by healthy people who want to allay fears about undiagnosed brain cancer and stroke, may do more harm than good.
After analysing 20,000 brain scans, the researchers found that almost 3% of healthy people had an abnormality on a brain MRI scan and warned that even when an incidental abnormality – such as a weakened blood vessel in the brain or a benign tumour – is discovered, there is no clear medical evidence that treatment is the best course of action. Dr Rustam Al-Shahi Salman, an MRC clinician scientist at the University of Edinburgh, said: “The difficulty with these health check-ups is that in the small number of people who do harbour some undiagnosed brain condition, there is not a clear next step. “We do not have enough medical evidence to know whether we should treat the abnormalities or just leave them be. Until we have that knowledge, we cannot be sure that commercial screening benefits people with incidental findings on their brain scan. Furthermore, there is little evidence that ‘peace of mind’ lasts for the people with normal brain scans.” The results of the study have been published in the British Medical Journal and represent the largest review of brain scanning results ever to be conducted. The study was funded by the UK Medical Research Council, the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Funding Council and the USA National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
