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BETHESDA, Md. — Beep. beep. beep. A full-body MRI machine buzzes and I talk to a skeleton staring back at me on a computer screen. On a gray afternoon in March, a technician highlights specific parts of a patient’s anatomy, each part generating its own pitch and rhythm. This person’s brain, especially the hippocampus, looks like a tree, with arteries extending out like branches. Once completed, this Prenuvo scan will provide this patient and their healthcare provider with 1.3 billion data points about their health. You read it correctly: 1.3 Billion.
“We designed it to get as much information as possible across different organ systems and proactively detect all sorts of things you might want to know,” says Dr. Daniel Durand, Prenuvo’s chief medical officer, wearing a smartwatch on his wrist. The company says it has found potentially life-threatening symptoms in 1 in 20 people.
And we plan to provide even more data in the future. Prenuvo is launching a new blood testing component to complement its whole body MRI services as part of its new membership package. It’s not increasing prices, it’s just adding lab evaluations that assess biomarkers related to inflammation, cardiovascular risk, hormonal balance, and more.
Prenuvo reiterated that he sees it as a complement to primary care in itself and does not recommend skipping regular doctor visits. “Today, we are not replacing primary care,” Durand said. “We’re not replacing these other tests, we’re adding to them. But what we’re trying to do in the future is make sure you can get this holistically, in one environment, in a way that’s really comfortable, because that’s what makes people want to come back.”
What does Prenuvo’s new membership tier look like?
If you want a Prenuvo scan, here’s what to expect:
- Core membership. Cost: $1,199 per year. This includes a faster, 30-minute MRI intensive scan that examines you from your head to mid-thigh, as well as a blood panel evaluation to give you an overall picture of your health.
- Comprehensive membership system. Cost: $2,499 per year. This includes a full body scan and a more detailed panel of tests including metabolic, cardiovascular, hormonal and inflammatory biomarkers.
- Executive membership: Cost: $4,499 per year, except $4,999 in New York. This is the company’s most detailed option. You’ll get a full body scan, brain health assessment, body composition analysis, and a more detailed test panel. Gain insight into reproductive hormones, metabolic markers, nutrient levels, and systemic inflammation.
If you would like to skip the blood test and just have a scan, you will pay the same price, but that is also an option.
In the United States, only five cancers are widely tested: breast cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, cervical cancer, and lung cancer, the latter only for high-risk patients. Such tests prevent deaths, but in Duran’s mind, and where Prenuvo helps, “it’s not enough to have science. You have to think through experience. You have to think through engagement.” The future of screening technology is more like a one-stop-shop, rather than scanning organ by organ and making dozens of appointments.
Preventive medicine providers and radiologists work together to provide an accurate and detailed picture of a patient’s health based on both MRI and blood test results. These consultations will focus on “what are the really significant things this person can do to improve their health,” Durand says.
Although Prenuvo recommends annual scans for most patients, some patients may be asked to come in earlier depending on the symptoms they are noting, or we may bring them in for additional screenings. In patients under 40 years of age, if there is nothing remotely suspicious to monitor, recurrence may occur every two years, although this is rare.
Who exactly is Prenuvo’s target market?We believe users of the Oura ring are people who are currently healthy and want to know as much as possible about their bodies. Another market is the “anxious well,” or customers who skew older and want early detection of illness. They may also flock to liquid biopsy tests like Galleri’s for early detection of multiple cancers.
Patients may experience sticker shock with Prenuvo’s pricing. But “uniquely in the medical industry, we tell you how much a test costs, so there are no surprises,” Durand said. Still, if the test turns up something that requires additional diagnosis, you’ll end up joining a health care system with more opaque pricing anyway. According to 2024 statistics from the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average out-of-pocket medical expense in the United States, excluding health insurance premiums, is $1,632 per person. Prenuvo scans are not covered by insurance, so these tests incur additional medical costs.
“We choose not to destroy the information.”
Research shows that whole-body MRI somethingHowever, the actual disease is much more rare. A 2020 study found that 95% of asymptomatic patients had some kind of “abnormal” finding, but only 1.8% of these findings were actually cancerous. Studies have shown mixed results regarding the extent to which these tests cause incidental findings.
Prenuvo plans to use 1.3 billion data points to find out what you don’t need to worry about. This is a trade-off with having a thorough test. For example, when we take a CT scan of an elderly person, it contains a large amount of information about aging blood vessels that are discarded. Why should we worry about chronic diseases when they are not something that will kill us?
“We decided not to destroy the information,” Durand said. “We think all the information is really important, and I think radiology is moving in that direction.”
It’s important to note that Prenuvo isn’t the only whole-body MRI company out there. Function and SimonMed are other options, each touting benefits that set them apart from the other.
Prenuvo has numerous clinical studies and trials underway. A Boston-based company called Hercules is surveying 100,000 people to assess the clinical performance of these scans and whether having them had a positive or negative impact on their health.
“We think this creates a higher level of evidentiary fact base to talk to insurance companies about coverage,” said Andrew Lacey, founder and CEO of Prenuvo. While some of his friends remain skeptical about getting tested themselves, many say they value the test and plan to get tested every year.
“If you change consumer expectations about health care, that will eventually trickle up to doctors and employers,” he says, offering hope for a future where these procedures are covered.
The history of medical screening generally leans toward doing more tests earlier, Durand said. That also applies to the patients at the Bethesda table who have returned as Prenuvo customers. “It’s the best way to stay healthy,” Durand joked.
