Is Biobank a good idea?

[Katie55]

Years ago I had a health assessment at Biobank and I've now been randomly selected to have another assessment which seems to be scans of the entire body. I'm not sure if this is a good thing for someone like me with HA.
On the first occasion I hadn't started with HA.
On the one hand I think it might be good to know all is well, on the other, I know I will worry myself sick waiting for the letter telling me they found something sinister.
What do you all think?

[Sabbine17]

It is a bit of a double-edged sword as far as I'm concerned. It will be good to get the all clear, but you have to prepare yourself for the possibility of (likely completely benign) things being picked up at your scan.

I had a brain MRI as I was having anxiety about some pretty bad migraines and found I have a small bone growth on one of my vertebrae. It sent me off into a spin about sarcoma cancer etc until I realised that it's just part of my genes (we tend to get degenerative disc disease in the family) which just means I have to be careful in the future and keep fit to prevent it.

Do these scans get assessed by a doctor? If you can handle the waiting (there will be waiting no matter what the results are) and you can review these to ensure any random imperfections of your body are actually normal, then by all means do it. If you think it will trigger you and the psychological effect on you would be greater than the benefit of the scans (i.e. you're not actively looking for anything or don't have any symptoms) then you could turn it down.

Some people find great reassurance after a scan as it gives them the power of knowledge, whereas for others this is not enough, in which case it might be better to avoid it and try to heal from the HA with other means. Hope this helps :)

[Katie55]

Pain: Initially it was a random health survey to monitor people's health over their lifetime. First visit was maybe 15 years ago and both my husband and myself were asked to take part. It just involved blood tests, height/weight, sight and hearing tests and a health questionaire. I didn't have HA then so I was just happy to help.
Sabbine: I agree about the waiting. Apparently they review the scans and if anything shows that indicates a serious health problem they would write to me and also my GP. There is a number to ring to book and ask any questions so I'll probably ring and talk it over. Thing is if I don't do it I'll kick myself for passing over this opportunity

[Sabbine17]

I know what you mean, I wouldn’t mind a free scan regardless of anxiety or not! Hopefully they can give you some more insight and help you decide. All the best

[Katie55]

Thanks