A non-invasive method to image the mass and/or function of human pancreatic islets is needed to monitor the progression of diabetes, and the effect of therapeutic interventions. As yet, no method is available for this purpose, which could be applied to in situ human islets. Animal and in vitro studies have documented that manganese infusion could improve the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the endocrine pancreas. Here, we have tested whether a similar approach could discriminate diabetic and non-diabetic patients. In vitro, human isolated islets readily incorporated manganese. In vivo, 243 manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) examinations were reviewed, including 41 examinations which were run on 24 patients with type 2 diabetes and 202 examinations which were run on 119 normoglycemic patients. The results show that MEMRI discriminates type 2 diabetics from non-diabetic patients, based on the signal enhancement of pancreas.