New research reveals that ancient Egyptians were tackling trauma care and that there was an emerging understanding of cancer.
In a study published in Frontiers in Medicine, an international team of scientists describe how they uncovered evidence of attempts at surgical procedures in two 4,000-year-old human skulls.
The study provides valuable insights into the history of medical practices and the understanding of cancer prevalence in ancient populations.
Researchers aimed to explore the boundaries of ancient Egyptian medical knowledge regarding trauma and malignancy.
They used micro-CT scans and microscopic analysis to characterise the lesions.
The case studies detail the examination of two ancient Egyptian skulls to identify and diagnose neoplastic and traumatic lesions using micro-CT scanning and microscopic bone surface analysis.
The skulls, dating from different periods, exhibit signs of malignant neoplasms and trauma, suggesting that ancient Egyptians had some capacity to manage severe injuries and possibly attempted surgical interventions for cancer.
Findings revealed that one skull of an adult female exhibited a malignant neoplasm consistent with primary osteosarcoma or meningioma. It displayed two healed cranial fractures, indicative of successful treatment of severe head trauma.
In another skull belonging to an adult male, there were signs of both primary and secondary neoplasms, one of the oldest known cases of cancer in ancient Egypt.
The presence of perimortem cutmarks suggests possible surgical attempts or post-mortem examination related to metastatic lesions.
The authors conclude that: ‘Our study shows the importance of re-analysing using new techniques and different scope palaeopathological cases from museums and university collections to provide new insights into past societies, including health issues… Furthermore, therapeutic practices or medical exploration have been interpreted as a result of such micro-approach, contributing to the understanding of caring behaviour in the context of the early history of medicine.’
The study’s lead author, Prof Edgard Camarós, a paleopathologist at the University of Santiago de Compostela, said: ‘This finding is unique evidence of how ancient Egyptian medicine would have tried to deal with or explore cancer more than 4,000 years ago. This is an extraordinary new perspective in our understanding of the history of medicine. The study contributes to a change of perspective. It sets an encouraging base for future research on paleo-oncology, but more studies will be needed to untangle how ancient societies dealt with cancer.’
Micro-CT scans can provide new insights into historical medical practices and improve the accuracy of paleo-pathological diagnoses.
Credit: Tondini, Isidro, Camarós, 2024
