YEARS vs. Function Health: A Longevity Diagnostics Comparison

Longevity medicine is evolving rapidly. Providers like the US-based Function Health and the Berlin clinic YEARS promise deeper insights into your health than a traditional doctor's visit can provide. Both aim to detect risks early and extend healthspan, but their methods are fundamentally different.

Function Health uses a digital-first approach with at-home test kits. YEARS consolidates comprehensive diagnostics into a single day at a physician-led clinic in Berlin-Charlottenburg.

This article compares both concepts in detail to help you understand which approach is right for your goals.

Overview: What Are YEARS and Function Health?

At first glance, both providers share a similar goal: to manage health proactively rather than just reacting to disease. However, their execution could hardly be more different.

YEARS – The Clinic-Based Longevity Center in Berlin

YEARS is a physician-led preventive medicine clinic in Berlin-Charlottenburg. All examinations take place on a single, 6- to 9-hour day. The scope ranges from hundreds of biomarkers and performance diagnostics to ultrasound and full-body MRI scans.

A central feature is the "Clinic-as-a-Study" model: every client contributes anonymized data to a longitudinal study on healthy aging. The medical team is led by Jan K. Hennigs, MD, a specialist in internal medicine and pulmonology with a research fellowship at Stanford University and over 120 scientific publications.

The results are not simply sent as a PDF. About two weeks after the diagnostic day, a physician discusses all findings with you and creates a prioritized action plan.

Function Health – The Digital-First Longevity Approach

Function Health is a US-founded company offering longevity diagnostics as a telemedicine service. After signing up online, you receive test kits for at-home collection of blood (via a mobile phlebotomy service or at partner labs), urine, or saliva. You send the samples to a central lab. You then discuss the results with a doctor from the Function Health network via video call. The model is based on an annual membership that covers tests and consultations. With its expansion into Europe, it is also becoming more available.

Key Differences at a Glance

Diagnostic Scope: What's Actually Measured?

The crucial question is: what is actually being measured? This is where the biggest differences between a clinical and a purely online model emerge.

Biomarker Panels: 87 to 230+ vs. Online Screening

Blood analysis is the foundation of both approaches, but the depth and breadth of the panels vary significantly.

Function Health typically starts with a panel of over 100 biomarkers, covering basic metabolic, hormonal, and inflammatory markers. This goes well beyond what standard public health insurance typically covers.

YEARS offers tiered programs:

• YEARS Core®: 87+ biomarkers, targeted at common chronic diseases. It includes markers often missing from standard check-ups: ApoB (a more precise heart risk marker than LDL), hs-CRP (a sensitive inflammatory marker), the HOMA-Index for early detection of insulin resistance, and NT-proBNP as a marker for cardiac stress.
• YEARS Evolve®: 120+ biomarkers. This adds advanced hormone profiles including testosterone, DHEA-S, and cortisol, markers for oxidative stress like oxidized LDL, and Interleukin-6.
• YEARS Ultimate®: 230+ biomarkers, one of the most comprehensive panels on the market. It includes autoimmune markers, amino acid profiles, and experimental markers from current longevity research.

The key is not just the number of markers, but their clinical synthesis in the context of all other findings. A purely digital model is structurally limited in this regard.

Medical Imaging: The Fundamental Difference

Medical imaging reveals structural changes that are not yet visible in blood tests. This is where the biggest gap between the two models lies.

As a purely online provider, Function Health does not offer clinical imaging. Its model is limited to sample analysis.

YEARS integrates imaging as a core component of all programs:

• Included from Core®: Comprehensive ultrasound of the heart, abdominal organs (liver, kidneys, spleen, pancreas), thyroid, and carotid arteries. An experienced physician assesses organ structure, heart function, and potential vascular plaque in real-time.
• Included from Evolve®: Full-body MRI from head to pelvis. Studies show that full-body MRI can achieve a sensitivity of up to 95% for detecting malignant tumors in asymptomatic individuals, especially when combined with other methods (Morana G, et al., Radiology 2011).

Many life-threatening conditions, such as early-stage kidney tumors, liver changes, or aortic aneurysms, cause no symptoms for years and are not detectable in a blood panel. They are often discovered only incidentally during an imaging scan.

Advanced Diagnostics: Liquid Biopsy, Genetics, and Biobanking

Liquid Biopsy: Starting with the Evolve® program, YEARS uses the TruCheck procedure, a blood test for screening over 70 solid tumor types. The method non-invasively detects circulating tumor DNA in the blood (Cohen JD, et al., Science 2018). Function Health does not offer such a screening as a standard service.

Medical Genetics: The Ultimate® program includes Whole-Exome and Whole-Genome Sequencing, analyzing over 170 clinically relevant genes for cancer, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases, as well as pharmacogenetics for over 150 drugs.

Biological Age and Biobanking: From Evolve® onwards, YEARS provides an assessment of biological age using seven different epigenetic clocks. In parallel, a personal biobank of 70 cryopreserved samples is created. These samples are available for future analyses with technologies that become available later, creating significant long-term value for individual health management.

This combination of molecular diagnostics and medical imaging cannot currently be implemented in a purely online model.

The Process and Experience: One Day in Berlin vs. Weeks at Home

The YEARS Process

1. You book an appointment online for your diagnostic day in Berlin.
2. You spend 6 to 9 hours at the clinic. Blood draws, body plethysmography, ultrasound, and the VO₂max test are coordinated in one place. You have direct contact with physicians and medical staff.
3. Lab analyses, radiology reports, and evaluation by the YEARS medical team proceed in the background, typically taking about two weeks.
4. In a strategy call via video, a physician discusses the 60+ page YEARS Health Report with you: Where are your biggest risks, and which steps have priority?
5. Depending on the program, further coaching sessions or physician check-ins follow.

The Function Health Process

1. Online registration with questionnaires.
2. A test kit arrives by mail. You collect saliva and urine samples at home. For the blood draw, you visit a partner lab or a mobile service comes to you.
3. Samples are mailed to the lab. Results are available after several weeks.
4. A video consultation with a doctor from the Function Health network.
5. Regular tests and discussions as part of an ongoing membership.

Comparing the Experience:

Costs and Financing

Both providers are positioned in the premium segment, but their models and reimbursement eligibility in Germany differ significantly.

Pricing Structures

YEARS has transparent, one-time program costs:

• Core®: €1,900
• Evolve®: €7,600
• Ultimate®: €16,900

These prices include all tests, physician consultations, and the final report. An annual update is possible.

Function Health is based on a membership model. In the US, costs are typically several hundred dollars per year, plus initial costs for more comprehensive panels. The exact prices for the European market will be determined upon market entry but are likely to be in the range of the YEARS Core® program, without including clinical diagnostics.

Insurance Reimbursement in Germany

YEARS bills all medically indicated services according to the German Medical Fee Schedule (GOÄ). Since the diagnostics often reveal treatable findings—such as vitamin deficiencies, elevated inflammatory markers, or early insulin resistance—partial reimbursement by private health insurance (PKV) is common. Many clients receive a significant portion of the costs back.

Function Health, as a US provider without a physical presence in Germany, cannot bill according to GOÄ. Reimbursement by German private health insurance is therefore generally not possible. You pay the full cost yourself.

Medical Quality and Expertise

The expertise of the medical team determines how much you can do with the data.

YEARS is led by Jan K. Hennigs, MD, a specialist in Internal Medicine and Pulmonology with a research fellowship at Stanford University and over 120 scientific publications. The entire medical team specializes in preventive and longevity medicine. The "Clinic-as-a-Study" model ensures that diagnostics are continuously aligned with the latest research.

Function Health works with a network of qualified physicians experienced in telemedicine. The specific depth of longevity expertise varies within the network and is structurally not comparable to that of a dedicated clinical research center.

Synthesizing hundreds of data points from labs, imaging, and functional tests into a coherent clinical assessment requires specialized experience. An algorithm cannot replace this, nor can a general practitioner without daily practice with this data mix.

Who Is Each Provider Best Suited For?

YEARS is a good fit for you if...

• you want a comprehensive, clinically validated baseline of your health.
• you consider imaging like ultrasound or full-body MRI essential for early detection.
• you value personal contact with specialized physicians.
• you appreciate the efficiency of a single diagnostic day.
• you live in or near Berlin or are willing to travel.
• you have German private health insurance and want to utilize reimbursement options.
• advanced diagnostics like liquid biopsy, genomics, or a personal biobank are relevant to you.

Function Health might be a good fit if...

• you are looking for a location-independent entry into biomarker analysis.
• you primarily want to track blood values over time without needing clinical diagnostics.
• flexibility and convenience are your top priorities.
• you cannot or do not want to travel to Berlin.
• you prefer an ongoing membership model and are prepared to cover the costs yourself.

Clinical Depth vs. Digital Convenience

Both providers are shifting the focus from reactive to proactive medicine, but their approaches serve different needs.

Function Health offers an accessible way to get a basic picture of your own biochemistry. For many, this is a meaningful first step.

However, anyone seeking medically robust preventive diagnostics will encounter structural limitations with a purely online model. YEARS offers three distinct advantages:

1. Imaging closes a diagnostic gap that blood tests inherently leave open. Structural changes in organs and vessels are invisible in lab results.
2. The in-person medical synthesis of all findings on a single day provides a quality of interpretation that a video call after mailing samples cannot match.
3. For those with German private insurance, GOÄ billing makes the program financially more attractive than a US-based membership model.

Furthermore, advanced diagnostics like genomics, liquid biopsy, and a personal biobank remain exclusive to clinics that perform such procedures daily.

The fundamental question is: are you looking for a digital service that tracks your blood values, or a specialized clinic that performs a deep medical assessment of your entire body?

For those willing to invest one day to get a complete clinical picture of their health, YEARS offers an approach that a purely online service cannot replicate.

Would you like to learn more about what such a diagnostic could look like for you? Schedule a free consultation with our team.

Sources

1. Cohen JD, et al. Detection and localization of surgically resectable cancers with a blood test. Science. 2018;359(6378):926-930. DOI: 10.1126/science.aar3247
2. Morana G, et al. Whole-body MR imaging with diffusion-weighted imaging in the detection of malignant lesions in patients with nonspecific clinical symptoms: a prospective multicenter study. Radiology. 2011;261(3):800-811. DOI: 10.1148/radiol.11110481
3. Ridker PM, et al. Rosuvastatin to Prevent Vascular Events in Men and Women with Elevated C-Reactive Protein. New England Journal of Medicine. 2008;359:2195-2207. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa0807646