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Whole-Body MRI

Whole-body MRI is designed for early detection (screening) and monitoring (surveillance) of numerous potential abnormalities including many soft tissue and lymph node cancers, infections, inflammatory conditions, and more. To determine if a whole-body MRI may be right for you, you should have a clear understanding of the purpose, intended benefits, limitations and potential risks of undergoing this test.

What is Whole-Body MRI?

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a diagnostic imaging technique that uses a strong magnet field, radio waves, and a computer to produce detailed images of the internal organs and soft tissues.

3. Whole Body T1

A whole-body MRI scan provides overall assessment of various organs and structures from your head to your upper thigh but is NOT a replacement for diagnostic evaluation of specific conditions and/or regions.

Depending on the type of protocol, whole-body MRI can provide information about your:

  • Brain
  • Spine
  • Neck and chest lymph nodes
  • Abdomen (including your liver, gallbladder, pancreas, spleen, adrenal glands and kidneys)
  • Pelvic structures

Indications for Whole-Body MRI

Whole-body MRI may be considered as a screening and surveillance test with an excellent ability to exclude disease (i.e. has a high sensitivity) for a variety of soft tissue and solid organ abnormalities including many infections, inflammatory disorders and cancers1-5.

This test may be particularly useful for patients with elevated lifetime risks of some cancers (including patients with a known family history and/or genetic predisposition). It is possible that detecting important findings earlier may allow for earlier treatment and potentially improved outcomes.

Limitations of Whole-Body MRI

To obtain enough information with an MRI to visualize the top of the head to upper thighs in a reasonable time frame, certain limitations need to be applied including an increased distance between each image and reduced number of sequences. While this allows us to evaluate more areas of your body than any single diagnostic exam, it limits our ability to see any single organ to the same extent as a diagnostic exam.

Key limitations include:

  • Best at detecting lesions larger than 1.5 cm
  • May miss smaller findings under 1.5 cm
  • Some findings may be non-specific and require further investigation
  • MRI is not ideal for evaluating certain tissues, such as the lungs

Risks and Controversy

Patient autonomy (your right to choose what’s best for you) is a central pillar of medical ethics in North America. It is possible that important findings can be identified early with whole-body MRI. Further, studies show that nearly all patients who undergo whole-body MRI believe it was highly to very highly useful and would repeat the exam in the future8. Whole-body MRI may also improve your psychological wellbeing, even when an incidental finding is identified9.

However, the use of whole-body MRI as a screening tool in healthy (asymptomatic) patients has not been proven6. Furthermore, because MRI is so sensitive, the rate of incidental findings (false positives) with this test may be as high as 1 in every 3 patients6. Missed findings (false negatives) can also occur in approximately 2% of patients (1 in 50). Like other screening exams in asymptomatic patients, additional potential risks include length bias (increased chance of finding slow growing or indolent rather than aggressive disease), lead-time bias (detecting a cancer early but before anything can be done to change the course of disease), overdiagnosis (detecting a disease that would never otherwise harm a patient), overtreatment and potential harms of additional therapy7.

Alternative Options

The option not to undergo this test remains. Alternative and more established screening methods may be appropriate, especially for:

  • Breast cancer
  • Lung disease
  • Cardiac disease
  • Colon pathologies

For patients at elevated personal risk for conditions such as cancer, alternative approaches can be discussed directly with your care provider.

Your Decision

At Insight, we support your right to choose what may be right for you. Whole-body MRI may be a useful screening or surveillance tool with a high sensitivity for certain infectious and inflammatory disorders and cancers, particularly in at risk populations, but remains unproven in asymptomatic patients. As many as 1 in 3 patients can have an incidental finding which may result in the need for future investigations and/or management (which can also carry additional risks).

Finally, this test remains imperfect, and many potentially significant pathologies will not be assessed. Your individual decision to proceed with this examination should balance the noted potential benefits against potential risks and harms.

What to Expect

Arrival: Arrive 30 minutes before your appointment at our Meadowlark location, please arrive to our MRI Front Desk.

Check-In: Complete paperwork and screening.

Preparation:

  • You'll change into provided clothing and store your items securely in a locker (with lock).

Exam Procedure:

  • Our MR technologist will screen you for MRI safety.
  • You'll lie on your back, wear headphones, and can listen to music.
  • The imaging takes about 60 minutes.
  • No radiation is used. Risks are minimal (e.g., mild heating or nerve tingling).
  • Our MRI scanners use a larger bore than most MRIs to reduce the risk of anxiety in small spaces (claustrophobia). However, if you know you are prone to claustrophobia, ask your doctor about medication to reduce your anxiety during the exam.

Post-Exam:

Once completed, you will be taken out of the MRI and returned to the change room.

    • You may leave right after, if feeling well.

    • A detailed report will be sent to your care provider in 2–3 business days, including any findings or follow-up recommendations.

Note, this test is not a substitute for a targeted diagnostic assessment and does not detect all diseases. Results should be interpreted as part of your broader health assessment and new or specific concerns should be brought to the attention of your care provider.

Cost for Whole-Body MRI

We offer multiple packages depending on patient concerns and family history. Our base package which evaluates head to thigh for masses > 1.5 cm and other significant findings starts at $2499. Add on packages include a "head and spine" package for more detailed brain, spine and brain vascular anatomy, a "liver triple screen" package to quantify liver fat, iron and fibrosis, and a non-contrast prostate package to exclude clinically significant prostate cancer. The pricing will vary depending on which package is selected. Patients can choose themselves between the base package and the base plus head and spine package. Additional packages will require specific physician requests as part of their requisition.

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References
  1. Petralia G, Zugni F, Summers PE, et al. Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (WB-MRI) for cancer screening: recommendations for use. La Radiolia Medica 2021;126:1434-1450.
  2. Zugni F, Mariani L, Lambregts DMJ, et al. Whole-body MRI in oncology: acquisition protocols, current guidelines, and beyond. Radiol Med 2024;129(9):1352-1368.
  3. Summers P, Saia G, Colombo A, et al. Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging: technique, guidelines and key applications. Ecancermedicalscience 2021;15:1164.
  4. Ahlawat S, Debs P, Amini B, et al. Clinical applications and controversies of whole-body MRI: AJR expert panel narrative review. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2023;220(4):463-475.
  5. Wang K, Lee E, Kenis S, et al. Application of diffusion-weighted whole-body MRI for response monitoring in multiple myeloma after chemotherapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur Radiol 2022;32(4):2135-2148.
  6. Kwee RM, Kwee TC. Whole-body MRI for preventative health screening: A systematic review of the literature. J Man Reson Imaging 2019;50(5):1489-1503.
  7. Davenport MS. Incidental findings and low-value care. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2023;221(1):117-123.
  8. Busacchio D, Mazzocco K, Gandini S, et al. Preliminary observations regarding the expectations acceptability and satisfaction of whole-body MRI in self-referring asymptomatic subjects. Br J Radiol 2021;94(1118):20191031.
  9. Korbmacher-BottcherD, Bamberg F, Peters A, et al. Long-term psychological consequences of whole-body magnetic resonance imaging and reporting of incidental findings in a population-based cohort study. Diagnostics (Basel) 2022;12(10):2356.