Up to one-third of radiology researchers may be falsifying medical images prior to publishing
During a recent survey, more than one-third of radiology researchers admitted to falsifying the medical images included in their scientific publications.
Medical image falsification refers to when researchers intentionally manipulate, fabricate or choose radiological images to make them more visually or academically appealing, either to enhance the odds of publication acceptance, embellish results or support conclusions when scientific evidence is lacking. Although these actions do not necessarily change the results of a study, they can influence how providers interpret them, potentially giving false confidence in findings. These actions can later trickle down into patient care, experts who compiled the results of the survey cautioned in the European Journal of Radiology.
“Radiologists and clinicians rely on scientific publications to support the meaningful use of medical imaging technology in clinical practice,” Thomas C. Kwee, MD, with the department of radiology at University Medical Center Groningen, in the Netherlands, and colleagues explained. “Radiology is an image-oriented discipline, and medical images in a scientific article play a major role in communicating a study’s findings to readers.”
To get a better idea of how common image falsification is, the team recruited corresponding authors published in the top 12 general radiology journals in 2024 to complete surveys on the topic. Participants answered questions related to different types of image falsification, including whether they had done it or if they had seen others do so.
To get a better idea of how common image falsification is, the team recruited corresponding authors who were published in the top 12 general radiology journals in 2024 to complete surveys on the topic. Participants answered questions related to different types of image falsification and whether they had done it or witnessed their colleagues do so.
Of the 310 respondents, 11.9% admitted to committing some sort of image falsification within the past 5 years, while another 37.1% acknowledged knowing their colleagues had done the same. The group indicated that the most common type of falsification was cherry-picking—when researchers would choose specific, nonrepresentative images for the sole purpose of supporting their conclusion.
Other types of falsification reported were instances of reusing older images without consent and manipulating images in a way that may cause providers to misrepresent study findings. The group noted that women and individuals without an MD degree were less likely to interfere with research images.
Interestingly, 64.8% of respondents said they felt like falsifying images in radiology research was a rare or nonexistent occurrence, suggesting the phenomenon “may be underrecognized.”
When asked about the factors that might influence researchers to falsify images, the majority cited pressures to publish and impress.
“This pushes researchers to excessively enhance figures to meet unrealistic visual standards. Instead, journals should accept raw but truthful images, even with imperfections—just as we should value natural beauty over artificial enhancement in a beauty contest. The solution is not just stricter rules, but a shift in publishing culture toward authenticity,” one respondent wrote.
Regardless of the reasons behind these actions, the authors cautioned that they represent a significant threat to the integrity of radiology research that could eventually affect providers’ decisions on how to treat and manage patients’ care.
Learn more about the findings here.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.