| Title |
On the Antiquity of Cancer: Evidence for Metastatic Carcinoma in a Young Man from Ancient Nubia (c. 1200BC)
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
PLOS ONE, March 2014
|
| DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0090924 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Michaela Binder, Charlotte Roberts, Neal Spencer, Daniel Antoine, Caroline Cartwright |
| Abstract |
Cancer, one of the world's leading causes of death today, remains almost absent relative to other pathological conditions, in the archaeological record, giving rise to the conclusion that the disease is mainly a product of modern living and increased longevity. This paper presents a male, young-adult individual from the archaeological site of Amara West in northern Sudan (c. 1200 BC) displaying multiple, mainly osteolytic, lesions on the vertebrae, ribs, sternum, clavicles, scapulae, pelvis, and humeral and femoral heads. Following radiographic, microscopic and scanning electron microscopic (SEM) imaging of the lesions, and a consideration of differential diagnoses, a diagnosis of metastatic carcinoma secondary to an unknown soft tissue cancer is suggested. This represents the earliest complete example in the world of a human who suffered metastatic cancer to date. The study further draws its strength from modern analytical techniques applied to differential diagnoses and the fact that it is firmly rooted within a well-documented archaeological and historical context, thus providing new insights into the history and antiquity of the disease as well as its underlying causes and progression. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 103 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 23 | 22% |
| United Kingdom | 14 | 14% |
| Canada | 5 | 5% |
| Ireland | 3 | 3% |
| Spain | 3 | 3% |
| Netherlands | 1 | <1% |
| Austria | 1 | <1% |
| Colombia | 1 | <1% |
| Belgium | 1 | <1% |
| Other | 7 | 7% |
| Unknown | 44 | 43% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 74 | 72% |
| Scientists | 20 | 19% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 7 | 7% |
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 2% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 182 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 1 | <1% |
| Germany | 1 | <1% |
| Netherlands | 1 | <1% |
| France | 1 | <1% |
| Austria | 1 | <1% |
| South Africa | 1 | <1% |
| Mexico | 1 | <1% |
| Spain | 1 | <1% |
| United States | 1 | <1% |
| Other | 0 | 0% |
| Unknown | 173 | 95% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 31 | 17% |
| Researcher | 27 | 15% |
| Student > Bachelor | 23 | 13% |
| Student > Master | 20 | 11% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 12 | 7% |
| Other | 29 | 16% |
| Unknown | 40 | 22% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 40 | 22% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 24 | 13% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 19 | 10% |
| Arts and Humanities | 15 | 8% |
| Social Sciences | 10 | 5% |
| Other | 26 | 14% |
| Unknown | 48 | 26% |