STAT+: Can you live longer for $5,500? Longevity clinics are the buzzy new trend at nonprofit hospitals

CHICAGO — As I walked briskly on a steep treadmill, with a mask resembling the villain Bane from "Batman," upbeat tunes from Prince played over an iPad speaker. My companion next to me guided me through the process, asking me to point to a color-coded sheet that ranked my level of exertion, from 1 (easy) to 10 (extremely difficult).

My aim was to reach the top of the scale. The VO2 Max test, which measures the body's efficiency in using oxygen, was the final assessment in a series of evaluations I underwent at a high-tech longevity clinic connected to Northwestern University. This comprehensive package costs $5,500 per year. The desire to stave off the effects of aging has historically attracted costly and dubious treatments, such as the 1920s doctors who believed grafting monkey testicles could reverse time, to Bryan Johnson's experiment with blood transfusions from his teenage son.

Today, some of America's most respected healthcare institutions are entering the booming longevity industry, touting a rigorous scientific approach to help individuals maintain their youthful vitality for as long as possible. Their assessments offer more in-depth insights into a patient's current health status and aging process than traditional doctor visits.

However, some skeptics question how these expensive clinics align with hospitals' nonprofit status and charitable objectives, and they caution that in their pursuit of paying customers, these clinics might be offering tests with insufficient evidence to prove their effectiveness in improving health. Continue to STAT+ to read the full story...