An investigation into the safety of MRI scanners is to be carried out amid health fears over the effects of the scans on staff who work the machinery.

MRI scanners to be examined for cancer link

Extract from the Telegraph:

"The scans, which provide detailed pictures of the inside of the body, use strong magnetic fields that experts fear can interrupt normal body functions.

The Health Protection Agency will set up a working group to investigate the long-term effects on those who operate MRI scanners.

Advisers have called for research into death rates and the number of cancer cases in staff who work with the machinery.

The babies of mothers who operated MRI machines while pregnant should also be studied, they claim. Particular attention should also be paid to whether exposure alters heart rhythms in those with cardiovascular disease or a pacemaker."