When should I add an extra blood panel to a Health MOT rather than buying a bigger MOT tier?

You've looked at the Essential Health MOT and it seems thorough. Then a friend mentions an extra liver test, or an iron study, and you start wondering whether to add something on the day.

The short answer: choose your tier first, then add a test only if a doctor agrees it would change the plan. Each Health MOT comes with its own published set of bloods, and the next tier up often holds the very question you brought with you. When it does, that tier is usually the better buy.

If the baseline is what you're after, the Essential Health MOT is £495 and takes 45 minutes at 117a Harley Street. Got a specific test in mind? Mention it when you book, or call 020 7183 7056, and the clinic will confirm it before your visit.

What bloods come with each tier?

Start with what's already included, because most people asking about an add-on are asking for something the next tier contains. Every personal MOT also includes a doctor's examination, laboratory work, a written report and a review.

Essential's full panel is a full blood count, kidney function, urate, calcium, phosphate and alkaline phosphatase, a full lipid profile, glucose, liver function, ESR, HbA1c, thyroid (FT4 and TSH) and iron. Read alongside an ECG and an examination, that's already a solid metabolic picture.

The Advanced Health MOT is £999 and takes one to one and a half hours, with a minimum four-hour fast. It includes everything in Essential, then adds advanced thyroid tests, iron with vitamin B12, vitamin D and a hormone profile. You also get a chest X-ray, DEXA when clinically indicated, spirometry, a fitness assessment and four GP appointments over 12 months, shareable with immediate family. If hormones or a deeper look at your thyroid prompted the question, Advanced already covers it.

The Elite Health MOT is £1,850 for men and £2,095 for women. It adds minerals, folate, CEA, and PSA or CA-125, with consultant ultrasound. Men's Elite is available Monday to Friday, and women's Elite runs on the Thursday and Friday specialist days.

The Ultimate Health MOT is £2,950, or £3,350 with gynaecology. It adds a full iron profile, a gluten-sensitivity profile and, for women, HE4, CA-125 and a ROMA score. In place of the X-ray and DEXA, it includes 3T MRI of the brain, intracranial and carotid MRA, whole spine and torso.

Which tier answers your question?

The rule is simple, even if the menus aren't. Want hormones? That's Advanced. Want tumour markers read alongside sex-specific ultrasound? That's Elite. Want MRI of the brain, MRA, whole spine and torso? That's Ultimate.

Those extras sit on the higher tiers for a reason: the extra bloods are meant to be read with the extra pictures and the extra time. CEA read by a doctor who has examined you and seen your ultrasound tells you far more than CEA alone on a PDF. In the same way, a full iron profile is one part of what Ultimate does, not the whole job.

If you're unsure which tier holds your question, the package quiz is a practical way to find out. It's a chooser between tiers, and a doctor still reads your results.

When is an extra test worth adding?

An extra test is worth discussing when it would change the plan. That usually means something in your history, a medicine, a previous result or a finding on examination that the published panel won't cover.

It helps to know how flags work. Reference ranges are statistical intervals, so a result just outside one can come from diet, a tablet or a one-off, or it can be something worth repeating. Adding more tubes because one flag felt unfinished tends to add noise rather than answers. Your review is where a doctor who has examined you says whether a result needs action, a repeat, monitoring or no treatment at all.

This matches UK screening principles. The UK National Screening Committee describes screening as finding apparently healthy people who may have a higher chance of a condition, with further tests often needed. NHS guidance on blood tests says results are interpreted alongside the rest of your health. NICE suspected-cancer guidance uses markers such as PSA and CA125 for people with particular symptoms, not as general extras to buy for peace of mind.

The clinic doesn't publish a priced extras menu. Its pages point to full-body MOTs, cognitive screening and cancer screening, and if you'd like an extra test with your MOT, the clinic confirms it with you before you book, so nothing is priced for the first time at reception.

If you want a single named test, such as one liver enzyme, a kidney panel or an iron study, without a Health MOT, the Blood London catalogue lists individual tests, including full body bloods.

Before your visit

• Choose your tier by the question you want answered, then ask whether anything still missing would change the plan.
• If you've had a panel at another clinic recently, bring the printout. Repeating the same chemistry six weeks later usually adds little.
• Fast only if the clinic has asked you to. Advanced, Elite and Ultimate ask for a minimum of four hours, and Essential needs no fasting.
• Keep taking your regular medicines unless you've been told otherwise.
• If you have a named extra in mind, ask the clinic to confirm it before you book.

To see exactly what each tier includes, read what a full body MOT includes. For markers in particular, see tumour markers in a MOT.

Frequently asked questions

When should I add an extra blood panel to a Health MOT?

After you've chosen a tier, and when a doctor agrees it would change the plan. If the next tier already includes your question, that tier is usually the better choice.

Does Essential include hormones or tumour markers?

Essential is the £495 baseline, with core metabolic bloods, an examination and an ECG. Hormones come with Advanced and tumour markers with Elite.

Can I add MRI as a blood-test extra?

MRI of the brain, MRA, whole spine and torso comes with Ultimate, as part of the package rather than as a bolt-on.

Where is the priced add-on catalogue?

The clinic doesn't publish a priced extras menu. If you'd like a named test that isn't part of your tier, the clinic confirms it with you before you book.

Are individual tests such as a single enzyme or iron study MOT add-ons here?

Named individual tests are listed on the Blood London catalogue, separately from the Health MOTs on this site.

Is an out-of-range blood result a diagnosis?

No. A laboratory flag is a statistical finding that a doctor reads with your examination, history and any scans.

What if I have a new symptom?

See a GP or get urgent care for chest pain, a new lump or a bowel habit that has changed and stayed changed, rather than waiting for your MOT. Call 999 or go to A&E in an emergency.

Sources

• UK National Screening Committee. Principles of screening
• NICE. Suspected cancer: recognition and referral (NG12)
• NHS. Blood tests
• NHS. PSA test
• Health Screening Clinic. Health MOTs
• Health Screening Clinic. Advanced Health MOT
• General Medical Council. Medical register, Penelope Sheehan, 6056535

Written By

Stephen Lingam

Managing Director

Managing Director of Medical Express Clinic and the Health Screening Clinic since 1984. Over 40 years of operational experience in private healthcare on Harley Street, overseeing patient care, clinical standards, and service delivery.

Medically Reviewed

Dr Penny Sheehan

MBBS, MRCGP

General Practitioner

GMC: 6056535

Specialising in women's health, hormonal balance, and menopause management within screening contexts.

Last reviewed: 25/09/2026