The present invention relates to emergency activation of a medical X-ray imaging system. In order to provide a facilitated way of visualizing a lost item inside a patient, a medical X-ray imaging system (10) is provided that comprises an X-ray image acquisition device (12) with an X-ray source (14) and an X-ray detector (16), a control device (18), an emergency activation interface device (22), and a display device (24). The X-ray source is configured to generate X-ray radiation of various characteristics, and the X-ray detector is configured to detect the X-ray radiation after being at least partly attenuated by an object of interest. The control device is configured to control the generation of the X-ray radiation by the X-ray source, and to generate image data from the detected X-ray radiation. The display device is configured to display an image representing the detected X-ray radiation. Further, the emergency activation interface device is configured to start a generation of X-ray radiation for maximal visibility of the object of interest upon being brought into an emergency mode.
