Thymus Health: AI-Reading Immune Gauge Linked to Longer Life and Lower Disease Risk

A pair of Mass General Brigham studies show thymus health—assessed with AI on CT scans from tens of thousands of adults—correlates with longevity and disease risk: healthier thymuses link to about 50% lower all-cause death, 63% lower cardiovascular death, and 36% lower lung cancer risk; thymic health also relates to better immunotherapy response, while smoking, chronic inflammation, and higher BMI are tied to poorer thymic health; researchers caution this is associative, not a proven lifespan predictor, but the thymus could become a key marker of healthy aging.