MRI scans are strong diagnostics with high-definition images of what lies inside a body. Strong magnetic fields require precaution, as brought out by an instance where a young woman suffered very serious injuries due to an oversight in a metallic core within a silicone sex toy that she happened to have before the MRI scan. This makes a stark reminder about the potentially deadly consequences of missing metal objects when such procedures are being performed. In April 2023, a 23-year-old woman went into an MRI with a silicone plug containing a metal core that was not known.

She thought that the item is made entirely out of silicone according to the advertising. However, the strong magnetic field of the MRI machine interacted with the hidden metal, dragging the object through her body and causing excruciating pain. According to reports from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the scene was harrowing, with the woman screaming in agony and requiring immediate hospitalization. Despite pre-scan screenings, which are routine prior to a scan, the patient did not inform the facility that the object existed because he presumed it was purely non-metallic. This caused serious injuries that led to the patient's law suit against the manufacturer for deceitful misrepresentations of material content.

MRI machines employ magnets between 0.5 to 3 Tesla (T). This is thousands of times stronger than the Earth's magnetic field. The tremendous force causes ferromagnetic materials, like iron and nickel, to be magnetized quickly and become strongly attracted toward the magnet. Objects as small as hairpins or paper clips will accelerate at 40 miles per hour inside the magnetic field.

The force can lead to catastrophic injuries in items lodged within the body, such as metallic implants or foreign objects. Metallic cores within devices, like pacemakers or intrauterine devices, must be disclosed to radiologists to prevent such complications.

How Metal Objects Interact with MRI Fields?

On these claims, Dr. Adam Taylor, a specialist in human anatomy, weighed his words in a international health website and added that the distance away and mass of this object would increase its velocity towards that of sound, "The acceleration would be phenomenal, but with a metallic core, it can't go anywhere near supersonic speeds. As for the size, the magnetic acceleration to the internal soft tissues would ensure that there could be severe intracranial trauma."

The injuries inflicted in this case likely involved damage to major blood vessels, nerves, or organs, highlighting the devastating impact of even minor oversight during an MRI scan.

This is not an isolated case. There are documented cases of metallic objects causing serious damage during MRI scans with a 65-year-old man with schizophrenia swallowed metal objects, including sockets and a hinge pin. The powerful magnetic field during an MRI scan caused the objects to rupture his stomach, resulting in serious injuries.

A toddler who ingested 11 small magnets perforated his bowel while undergoing a scan, making his case unique. In another deadly but extremely rare incident, there have been people who hide a firearm on themselves during MRI procedures. Magnetic attraction can trigger a discharge in a weapon and has led to some fatal injuries.

These cases emphasize the very strong need for adequate screening and patient education prior to an MRI.

Preventing MRI-Related Incidents

Medical professionals have been trained to avoid risks. This is by properly screening a patient for metallic objects. In general, most pre-scan protocols include:

• Patients are interrogated about implants, recent surgery or exposures at work related to metals.
• Radiologists sometimes use handheld metal detectors to search for hidden items.
• People who work with metal, like welders or machinists, will need additional testing to detect microscopic metal fragments within soft tissues or eyes.

The case emphasizes the importance of product labeling by manufacturers, especially those products that are likely to unintentionally cause harm to health. The patient's assumption that her device was 100% silicone points to a larger problem in consumer markets with misinformation.

It also reminds the patients to report any possible dangers to the medical professionals, no matter how the objects look non-metallic. In sensitive cases, patients can request private discussions with healthcare providers to ensure safety without discomfort.

In the end, it is a joint effort from manufacturers, healthcare professionals, and patients that can prevent such tragedies. Manufacturers must ensure truthful marketing, while healthcare providers should educate patients about the dangers of metal objects in MRI settings. For patients, understanding the risks and actively participating in pre-scan disclosures can be lifesaving.

This young woman's experience is a sobering example of the unforeseen dangers posed by MRI machines when precautions are overlooked. It serves as a wake-up call to address gaps in patient awareness, medical protocols, and product transparency. By learning from this incident, the medical community and the public can work together to ensure MRI scans remain a safe and effective diagnostic tool.

Breast cancer has quietly become one of India’s most pressing public health challenges. Today, it is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Indian women and a leading cause of cancer-related deaths.

Data from the Global Cancer Observatory shows that nearly 1.9 lakh women are diagnosed with breast cancer in India each year. This works out to one new case every four minutes. The death toll is equally worrying. On average, a woman in India dies of breast cancer every eight minutes, highlighting how urgently the country needs stronger awareness, early diagnosis, and sustained care.

One factor that sets India apart is the age at which women are affected. Almost half of all breast cancer patients in the country are younger than 45. This is a much higher proportion than seen in many Western nations, where the disease is usually detected later in life.

Breast Cancer: A Rising Burden Across The Country

Cancer surveillance data from GLOBOCAN and Indian registries under the Indian Council of Medical Research point to a steady rise in breast cancer cases. Rapid urbanisation, changing lifestyles, delayed pregnancies, shorter periods of breastfeeding, rising obesity, and limited screening practices have all played a role.

Late diagnosis continues to be one of the biggest challenges. Many women seek medical help only when the disease has progressed to advanced stages, making treatment more difficult and outcomes less certain. Fear, social stigma, lack of awareness, and limited access to screening services, especially in rural and semi-urban areas, often contribute to these delays.

For some women, the risk of recurrence can be significant, depending on the type and stage of cancer. Living with this uncertainty takes a lasting toll on mental and emotional wellbeing.

Novartis 'Take Charge' Campaign Focuses On Life Beyond Diagnosis

To address these gaps, Novartis has launched the ‘Take Charge’ campaign in collaboration with Times Network. The initiative aims to move the conversation beyond diagnosis and medication, encouraging women and their families to play an active role in decisions about care, recovery, and quality of life.

Speaking at the Times Network India Health Summit and Awards 2025, Amitabh Dubey, Country President and Managing Director of Novartis India, underlined that effective cancer care goes far beyond medicines alone. He spoke about the need for personalised treatment, open conversations between doctors and patients, and long-term support throughout the cancer journey.

According to Amitabh Dubey, advances in medical science have changed the way many cancers are managed. In breast cancer, better imaging, improved diagnostics, genomics, and targeted therapies now allow doctors to tailor treatment to the biology of each patient rather than relying on a uniform approach.

'Take Charge' By Novartis Highlights Need For Early Awareness

Awareness remains a central pillar of the ‘Take Charge’ initiative. Many women hesitate to speak openly about breast health or postpone seeing a doctor even after noticing symptoms. Encouraging routine self-examinations, timely screenings, and honest conversations about warning signs is especially important for younger women, who may not believe they are at risk.

The campaign also places strong emphasis on caregivers and families. Emotional support, access to reliable information, and timely medical advice can make a meaningful difference to both treatment outcomes and recovery.

Breast Cancer Awareness: Closing Gaps In Access And Affordability

Although government schemes such as Ayushman Bharat and various state cancer programmes have improved access to care, health insurance coverage in India remains limited, reaching only about 38 percent of the population. As a result, newer and more advanced treatments are still beyond the reach of many patients.

Novartis has been working with government agencies and local health systems to improve referral pathways, strengthen early detection efforts, and train frontline health workers. Community-based initiatives involving ASHA workers, awareness drives, and structured referrals aim to ensure that women with early symptoms reach appropriate care without unnecessary delays.

Breast cancer does not have to signal the end of a woman’s life or identity. With early diagnosis, personalised treatment, and continued support, many women go on to live full and meaningful lives. Campaigns like Take Charge seek to reinforce this message and remind women that they can remain active decision-makers in their own health journeys.

As Amitabh Dubey noted at the launch, taking charge is not only about fighting disease. It is about having the knowledge, confidence, and support to ask the right questions, make informed choices, and live well beyond cancer.

Schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BD) and major depressive disorder may share the same genetic roots, a Nature study shows.

While experts have long classified each of these mental disorders as individual illnesses with their own causes, researchers from across China have discovered that these three diseases share about 70 percent common genetic and environmental risk factors.

Schizophrenia is a severe, chronic brain disorder that can lead psychosis, hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking and reduced emotional expression. It can affect how a person's thinks, feels and behaves, making it hard to distinguish reality.

While bipolar disorder is a chronic mental illness which causes extreme mood swings, from emotional highs (mania/hypomania) to lows (depression), affecting the brain's energy, activity and focus levels.

On the other hand, major depressive disorder or clinical depression, is a serious mood disorder that causes persistent sadness and loss of interest in a person. It can affect feelings, thoughts and daily activities and can be identified by symptoms such as low energy, sleep/appetite changes, guilt, concentration issues and thoughts of death.

What Did The Study Find?

Using advanced techniques, they identified 238 genetic variants that raise risk across multiple disorders and showed that five major genetic patterns explain most of the differences between people with and without mental illness.

Read More: Study Shows Depression Can Accelerate The Onset Of Chronic Illnesses

Based on these genetic patterns, the disorders clustered into five broad groups: internalizing conditions such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder; neurodevelopmental conditions including autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; substance use disorders; compulsive conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and anorexia and lastly, a fifth group that included bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

The findings explain why many individuals are diagnosed with more than one mental health condition as many genes affect multiple brain pathways. This indicates that the same genetic changes can lead to different disorders depending on other biological and environmental factors.

Can The Same Treatment Plan Be Used For These Illnesses?

Even though medications such as antidepressants are useful in treating multiple mental illnesses including depression, anxiety and PTSD, the researchers concluded that more research is needed to understand the biology behind the genetic factors to understand the links between the disease.

One of the study’s authors compared the current system to diagnosing a patient with separate illnesses for a cough, sore throat and runny nose instead of recognizing a single underlying infection.

Nearly one in eight people globally, around 970 million individuals, were living with a mental disorder in 2021, with anxiety and depression being the most common globally.

Amazon has confirmed that 10 employees at its Coventry, UK warehouse have tested positive for tuberculosis (TB) as calls for site shutdown continue to grow.

Cases emerged at the hub, which has about 3,000 employees, in September 2025 and were found to be non-contagious. However, the retail giant acknowledged the breakout on January 16.

Officials from Amazon noted: "In line with best practice safety procedures, we immediately followed guidance from the NHS and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and made all potentially affected employees aware of the situation. Out of an abundance of caution, we are currently running an expanded screening program with the NHS.

"We will continue to follow guidance from the experts in the NHS, and would respectfully remind public organizations of the need for responsible communications where matters of public wellbeing are concerned."

A spokesperson also assured that no new cases have been recorded in the area and a "screening program" being carried out amid "an abundance of caution" in collaboration with NHS and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

Are The Patients Receiving Treatment?

Since being diagnosed with TB, the unidentified patients have been receiving treatment from the UKHSA in West Midlands. Dr Roger Gajraj, consultant in health protection with UKHSA West Midlands also revealed that tests are being offered to those who may have had close contact with the patients and assured the overall risk remains low.

He told the BBC: "The small number of individuals affected by tuberculosis (TB) are responding well to treatment and are no longer infectious, so pose no onward risk.

"As a precaution, and in line with national guidance, we are offering testing to those who may have had closer contact with the affected individuals. The overall risk remains low. TB is fully treatable with antibiotics. We continue to work closely with Amazon to monitor the situation."

Read More: WHO’s Latest TB Guidelines Highlight Nutrition as Key to Treatment

Why Is TB Dangerous?

Common signs and symptoms of TB include unexplained weight loss, loss of appetite, chills and fever, fatigue, getting night sweats, weakness or fatigue. Symptoms of TB disease in the lungs may include coughing up blood or sputum, a cough lasting for more than 3 weeks and chest pain.

TB is typically diagnosed through the Mantoux Tuberculin Skin Test(TST). Here, a small amount of tuberculin is injected into the skin of the forearm and is monitored for a reaction 48 to 72 hours after the injection. A positive skin test result indicates the presence of TB and there is a need for additional tests to determine to determine if it is active or latent.

If positive, blood tests are done to determine or rule out if the patient has active or latent TB. There are two blood tests approved by the Food and Drug Administration for TB- T-SPOT TB test(T-spot) and the QuantiFERON-TB Gold-In-Tube test(QFT-GIT). Doctors may also prescribe a chest X-ray or CT scan after a positive skin test.

Despite being preventable through vaccine and and curable through antibiotics, TB remains a leading infectious killer and causes over a million deaths annually worldwide, with millions falling ill each year.

In 2024, about 10.7 million people were diagnosed with TB out of which 1.23 million died from the disease.