Preventive Screening: Providing Peace of Mind or Looking for Trouble?

A recently development in private and NHS medicine has been the use of preventive scanning upon asymptomatic patients. Focusing upon the NHS National Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening Programme, and upon the use of  scanning technology by private companies offering direct-to-consumer body imaging, this article considers practical, ethical and legal implications in relation to the use of scanning in these contexts. It is suggested that ethical and legal issues arise particularly in relation to the potential for scanning technology to cause physical or psychological harm to individuals in certain circumstances, and in relation to the provision of adequate information to patients about the potential risks of treatment.