Hi, Ira here. A lot of you have said, hey, Ira, we like the podcast, but sometimes we just want to listen to one story at a time. And we hear you. So we're going to try something new. A topic or two a day spread out through Monday through Science Friday. Have a listen.

Full body MRIs are being sold as a way to detect cancer and other conditions early.

The problem is that there are many potential harms from using these tests.

It's Tuesday, October 10th, and today, just like every day. It's Science Friday.

I'm sci-fire producer Shishana Bucksbaum.

The latest trend in celebrity health care, full-body MRI scans.

Celebrities like Kim Kardashian are endorsing them. They aren't covered by health insurance

and run over $2,000 out of pocket. Flora Lickman takes it from here.

Typically a new diagnostic tool is marketed to doctors and radiologists, but companies like

Prenuvo are marketing directly to consumers.

They claim that their scans will catch early signs of cancer, aneurysms, liver diseases,

and even multiple sclerosis.

And it's an appealing claim.

If you can afford it, wouldn't it be nice to have that peace of mind

catch cancer super early, potentially even save your life? But is that claim even true? Here to

separate fact from fad is my guest, Dr. Rebecca Smith-Bindman, professor of epidemiology and

biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine,

and the director of the Radiology Outcomes Research Laboratory based in San Francisco, California.

Welcome to the show. Thank you so much for inviting me.

Okay, so celebrities make dubious health claims all the time. I am looking at you,

Goop J-Degeg. Why should we be paying

attention to these full-body MRI scans? I think many of the bogus things that celebrities

...