Prenuvo Scans: The Hottest New Employee Perk in Silicon Valley and Beyond
For years, one of the defining benefits of scoring a job in Silicon Valley has been the over-the-top perks. From in-office laundry services to free dinners and complimentary shuttles, tech companies have courted employees with unprecedented benefits. Amidst the tech stock downturn, a new perk has emerged: full-body MRIs. Prenuvo, a California-based startup, offers full-body MRI scans to detect early signs of diseases, including cancer. Endorsed by celebrities like Kim Kardashian and utilized by tech venture capitalists, dozens of companies now offer these preventative scans to their employees, according to Andrew Lacy, Prenuvo’s founder and CEO.
Silicon Valley’s Embrace of Prenuvo Scans
Silicon Valley has been at the forefront of integrating wellness into employee benefits. Last year, Dr. Bronner’s covered ketamine-assisted therapy for its employees. Following this trend, Prenuvo launched “Prenuvo for Employers” in October, a healthcare solution aimed at enhancing employee well-being through preventative, precision medicine.
Employee Benefits
Prenuvo scans offer early detection of health issues, which can lead to significant savings on healthcare costs and improved health outcomes. Amit Patel, CEO of Rakuten International, emphasized, “If providing employees with access to Prenuvo full-body scans extends or saves just one life, we’ll know that offering this technology as a benefit was the right thing to do.”
Notable companies and figures in Silicon Valley are adopting this perk, reflecting a corporate mindset open to new ideas and technologies. Additionally, industries like firefighting are integrating Prenuvo scans for their high-risk employees. Shaun Fix, President at Emergency Medical Consultants, highlighted the benefits: “We’ve been able to roll out Prenuvo to hundreds of frontline workers so that they have a baseline knowledge of their health and can catch things before they become problems.”
Prenuvo’s inception is deeply rooted in the personal journey of its founder, Andrew Lacy. Reflecting on his experience, Lacy shared, “I moved to the US to follow the American dream and started my first entrepreneurial venture in 2008, which I sold to Disney. However, my relentless work ethic took a toll on my health. In my mid-forties, I realized I wasn’t taking care of myself and needed to change. I found a radiologist in Canada offering whole-body scans, which provided comprehensive health insights and inspired me to start Prenuvo.”
Lacy also noted broader trends influencing the adoption of such health measures. “Younger people entering the workforce are less focused on burning the midnight oil and more on ensuring a holistic, healthy life. There’s a general trend towards proactive health management, especially post-COVID. Specifically, high-risk sectors like the VA, mining, and firefighting are seeing more interest in early health screenings.”
The Role of Prenuvo in Proactive Health
AI and Accuracy
Prenuvo scans leverage advanced technology and AI to provide highly accurate health insights. Many MRI machines in use today are over 20 years old, but Prenuvo utilizes the latest hardware and software, combined with AI, to detect subtle physiological changes. This allows for early detection and better health management. Andrew Lacy highlights, “We optimize everything for accuracy… the accuracy of these exams is as good as standard-of-care screening for some cancers.”
Notable Tech Companies Advancing AI in Healthcare
Several tech companies are making significant strides in AI-driven healthcare solutions. A prominent example is the collaboration between the Department of Defense (DOD) and Google Public Sector. Together, they developed an augmented reality microscope to help pathologists more accurately diagnose cancer. This initiative is part of the DOD’s broader effort to improve healthcare for over 9 million eligible beneficiaries, with approximately $1.7 billion of their annual budget dedicated to cancer research and treatment. AI continues to emerge as a powerful tool in the fight against cancer, enhancing detection, diagnosis, and treatment options.
Real-Life Impact
Prenuvo scans have provided life-changing insights for many individuals. For example, one tech employee shared, “Absolutely worth it. My wife and I did scans on the same day and they found growths on her ovaries which she then had checked out by ultrasound to make sure they were not dangerous.” Another patient expressed relief after a Prenuvo MRI confirmed that her breast density was benign, offering reassurance after a mammogram required a follow-up.
Research Insights
Prenuvo’s use of AI has led to significant advancements in understanding health risks. For instance, their research has linked visceral abdominal fat with increased brain atrophy, highlighting the broader implications of obesity on overall health. This advanced technology allows for early detection of conditions that could otherwise go unnoticed.
Andrew Lacy, Prenuvo’s founder, emphasizes the unprecedented insights made possible by AI. “With the largest normative dataset of whole-body imaging in the world, our AI researchers partner with the best academic minds to understand, like never before, what ‘normal’ aging means.”
However, the American College of Radiology has expressed skepticism, stating in April 2023, “To date, there is no documented evidence that total body screening is cost-efficient or effective in prolonging life.” This underscores the ongoing debate about the efficacy and value of full-body
Equitable Access and Cost
Andrew Lacy has outlined a two-pronged approach to making Prenuvo scans more affordable and accessible. The first strategy focuses on reducing costs internally as the business scales. This includes building centers with multiple MRI machines to spread costs, shortening scan times from 45 minutes to as little as 15 minutes, and leveraging AI to assist radiologists. Lacy notes, “If we were to screen every single adult in the US, there wouldn’t be enough radiologists… AI will play a role in radiology if these techniques are ever going to be done at population scale.”
The second strategy involves a clinical trial in Boston with a social equity component, aiming to include a representative sample of the US population. This trial will follow participants’ health over time to gather data that could support the economic feasibility of covering these scans for everyone. “The economics coming out of that study will be favorable for these being covered by it for everyone,” says Lacy.
Conclusion
Prenuvo’s full-body MRI scans offer comprehensive health insights and early detection of numerous conditions, finding traction in both Silicon Valley startups and legacy industries like mining and firefighting. The adoption of these scans highlights a growing trend towards proactive healthcare and early intervention.
This article is part of an ongoing series exploring trends in proactive care, functional medicine, and regenerative medicine. We anticipate significant growth in these areas as technology continues to advance, providing new opportunities for early detection and personalized health.
Please share your thoughts and experiences with employee health perks and proactive healthcare measures. Your feedback and stories are invaluable as we continue to explore these evolving trends in health and wellness.