Health
Ancient Egyptians attempted to surgically remove brain cancer from skull 4,000 years ago, study finds
Lesions found in ancient skulls suggest that cancer could have been a medical issue long before our time.
Ancient Egyptian skulls studied at the Duckworth Laboratory Collection at the University of Cambridge in the U.K. have shown signs of varying lesions, some believed to be left by malignant tumors.
The case report, published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, found that a skull labeled E270, which belonged to a woman in her 50s, had healed cranial injuries made potentially by a sharp object.
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The evidence indicates that the woman survived, thanks to “some kind of treatment and degree of post-traumatic care,” the researchers wrote.
Skull 236, belonging to a male in his 30s, was shown to have cut marks on the bone surface that suggest a tumor had been removed.
Skull E270 is shown at the base of a microscope. The skull had healed cranial injuries potentially caused by a sharp object. (Tatiana Tondini, Albert Isidro, Edgard Camarós, 2024)
While these findings indicate “medical surgical exploration,” the researchers were unable to identify the timing of the cutting – before or after death.
“Applying scientific methodologies to archeology allows us to make new discoveries about the past.”
These surgical procedures could have been practiced during the Middle and Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic periods, the researchers concluded.
“In this context, it becomes clear that caring for others, including wound care, is a key behavior among humans that has also been observed in non-human primates,” they wrote.
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First study author Tatiana Tondini, a researcher at the University of Tübingen in Germany, discussed the results with Fox News Digital, noting that the most “remarkable finding” was the discovery of cut marks near “two secondary cancer lesions” on skull 236.
“They have been confirmed not to be taphonomic (environmental) damages, and there are two explanations for them,” she said.
Skull 236, pictured here, was shown to have two “secondary cancer lesions.” (Tatiana Tondini, Albert Isidro, Edgard Camarós, 2024)
The first possible explanation is that the ancient Egyptians attempted a surgical removal of the secondary tumors, “which would make it the first recorded cancer surgical operation in history, but we cannot confirm that,” Tondini said.
The second possibility is that the ancient Egyptians made those cut marks while examining the man after he passed away.
“Caring for others, including wound care, is a key behavior among humans.”
“This would also be remarkable, as it means that the ancient Egyptians were studying cancer,” the researcher said.
Another important discovery, according to Tondini, was the successful treatment of skull E270, which had traces of a lesion left by a sharp object like a sword or hatchet.
Skull E270, pictured here, had traces of a lesion left by a sharp object like a sword or hatchet. (Tatiana Tondini, Albert Isidro, Edgard Camarós, 2024)
“It is very unlikely that the individual would have made it without proper treatment,” she said.
“We can see that the individual survived, as the fracture has clear signs of healing, which means ancient Egyptians were able to treat severe cranial fractures.”
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An accident or act of domestic violence was the most likely cause of the woman’s head injury, according to Tondini, although the depth of the wound and the sign of brutality could point to a battle wound.
“If that is the case, we should reconsider the role of women in Ancient Egypt,” she said. “It is known that women had more rights in Ancient Egypt compared to Rome and Greece, but warfare duties have always been associated with men.”
A fragment of wall painting depicts the transport of ointments, found in the tomb of Metchetchi at Saqqara in Egypt. (DEA/G. DAGLI ORTI/De Agostini via Getty Images)
As the skulls were “very old” and “very fragile,” Tondini said it was difficult to assess the damage with the naked eye.
“But using a powerful microscope, it was possible to characterize most lesions,” she said. “For some more complex ones, the micro-CT scan allowed us to analyze the internal structure of a lesion and determine its cause.”
‘Cancer culture’
Based on the findings from skull 236, the researchers believe that cancer is not only a modern disease caused by unhealthy lifestyles and exposure to carcinogens, but that it was also present in ancient populations — though at lower rates, according to Tondini.
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Tondini admitted that she and her fellow researchers did not expect these findings before investigating these two “very rare” pieces of history.
“I remember I was analyzing skull 236 with the microscope to characterize its lesions,” she told Fox News Digital. “When I got to the first lesion that had those cut marks, I initially was a bit unsure of what I was looking at.”
A lesion inside skull 236 shows cut marks identified under the microscope. (Tatiana Tondini, Albert Isidro, Edgard Camarós, 2024)
“I asked my colleague, Dr. Camaros, who was also very surprised about the discovery,” she continued. “We characterized the cut marks and confirmed they were manmade and occurred before or immediately after the death of the individual.”
Within a few minutes, Tondini said, the laboratory was “filled with other researchers, technicians and professors, who were all around the microscope looking at the lesions and could not believe their eyes.”
Neurosurgeon’s take
Dr. Paul Saphier, M.D., a neurosurgeon and founder of Coaxial Neurosurgical Specialists in New Jersey, commented that while this new research is interesting, there has been similar evidence of neurosurgical procedures dating back to the Mesolithic period, around 6000 B.C.
“These early surgeries [known as trepanning] were usually small holes in the skull with limited surgical extent,” Saphier, who was not involved in the skull research at hand, told Fox News Digital.
A medieval surgeon performs a “trepanning” operation on a patient’s skull, circa 1350. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
“Clearly, our ability to perform complex neurosurgical procedures was limited by technology, mostly radiographic (CT/MRI imaging) and direct surgical visualization.”
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The neurosurgeon added, “With these advances, as well as anesthesia and critical care medicine, we have been able to tackle more sophisticated cases, large in scope and extent.”
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In an “ironic twist,” he said, recently there’s been a “tremendous reversal toward a more minimally invasive approach” in cranial neurosurgery.
“This has been heralded by newer tech and an outspoken group of advanced cranial neurosurgeons championing these advances, of which I am proud to be a member of,” Saphier added.
Skull 236, at left, and skull E270, right, revealed interesting findings about ancient medicine. (Tatiana Tondini, Albert Isidro, Edgard Camarós, 2024)
“So ironically, what is old may … actually be new again.”
Tondini said she hopes the study findings will inspire more research on “cancer cases in antiquities using non-destructive techniques.”
“For other researchers and the public, applying scientific methodologies to archeology allows us to make new discoveries about the past,” she said.
Every day we’re faced with a zillion small choices: Go to sleep early, or watch one more episode of that Netflix drama. Call an old friend to catch up, or cruise social media. Of course, no single action will guarantee a long, healthy life or doom you to an early grave. But those little daily decisions do add up, and over the long term they can make a difference when it comes to both your longevity and your health span, the amount of life spent in relatively good health.
Scroll through this theoretical “day in the life” and select the option that best fits your typical day. Not every situation will apply perfectly, but think about which choice you’d be most likely to make. This isn’t a formal scientific assessment. The goal here isn’t to assign you a “good” or “bad” score, but to help you understand the central factors that shape the way we age and how long we live.
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A study from Harvard Medical School indicates natural selection has favored the red hair gene, resulting in a potential increase in the number of redheaded people as humanity continues to evolve.
By analyzing nearly 16,000 ancient genomes spanning 10,000 years, researchers identified a list of traits that nature is actively pushing forward. Among the most prominent were the genetic variants for red hair.
“Perhaps having red hair was beneficial 4,000 years ago, or perhaps it came along for the ride with a more important trait,” the authors noted.
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The study, published in the journal Nature, relied on a large database of ancient DNA from West Eurasia. Using new computing methods, the team was able to filter out random fluctuations in DNA to identify what it called “directional selection.”
Directional selection happens when a particular version of a gene gives an organism a strong survival or reproductive advantage, causing it to become more common in a population faster than it would by chance, according to experts.
Directional selection is when a specific gene provides such significant benefits that it rises in frequency across a population much faster than random chance. (iStock)
Prior to this study, scientists only knew of about 21 such instances in human history, one of which was lactose tolerance. This new research uncovered hundreds more.
“With these new techniques and a large amount of ancient genomic data, we can now watch how selection shaped biology in real time,” Ali Akbari, first author of the study and senior staff scientist in the lab of Harvard geneticist David Reich, said in a press release.
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The data showed that genetic markers for red hair are among 479 gene variants that have been strongly favored over the past 10,000 years. One likely explanation, the researchers said, is a major shift in human history: the transition to farming.
Scientists have long pointed to vitamin D synthesis as a likely driver for the rise of traits like fair skin and light hair. (iStock)
As humans moved away from hunting and gathering and settled into agricultural societies, their environment and behavior changed radically, triggering an evolutionary “acceleration.”
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While the Harvard study provides the first definitive statistical proof that red hair was actively selected during the rise of farming, the researchers noted that the exact prehistoric benefit still requires more study.
However, scientists have long pointed to vitamin D synthesis as a likely driver for the rise of these light-pigmented traits in northern climates.
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While redheads remain a minority of the global population today, the Harvard study’s analysis suggests that they may not be an evolutionary accident.
While redheads remain a minority of the global population today, the Harvard study’s analysis suggests they may not be an evolutionary accident. (iStock)
Instead, the red hair trait was “boosted” by natural selection as humans adapted to the challenges of a modern world, according to the researchers.
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The researchers urged caution in how these findings are interpreted.
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“What a variant is associated with now is not necessarily why an allele propagated,” the authors noted.
Dr. Megan Jack, a neurosurgeon in Cleveland, often works 60 or 70 hours a week. And she’s completely unavailable when she’s in the operating room. That makes it tough to be a caregiver for her 76-year-old mother, who lives in a separate unit on Dr. Jack’s property, 30 minutes away from the hospital.
To help care for her mother, who has Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Jack uses an array of high-tech tools, some of which didn’t exist just a few years ago. She manages her mother’s medications with a smart pill box. She changes her television channels with an app, sends appointment reminders through a digital message board — and, with her mother’s blessing, uses cameras for communication and monitoring.
“It’s been invaluable that I can both make sure she’s safe and make sure everything is going well,” Dr. Jack said, “but also give her the independence and the freedom that she still deserves.”
America is aging rapidly. Roughly 11,000 people are turning 65 each day in the United States. And many of them — 75 percent of people over 50, according to AARP’s most recent survey, from 2024 — hope to spend their remaining years in the comfort of their homes, rather than in assisted-living or other care facilities.
One thing that could help fulfill those wishes is the budding field of “age tech,” which encompasses tools that support older adults. Industry experts say that age tech is making homes safer for older adults and is easing the minds of their caregivers, especially those who live far away or work outside the home.
Dr. Jack said that age tech had “really allowed me to integrate caregiving into my life, as opposed to caregiving taking over my life.”
The age tech boom
If older adults don’t have loved ones who are both close by and able to help, they might believe they don’t have a ton of options. They can live independently, or, if they can afford it and qualify medically, they can move to an assisted-living facility or a nursing home, without a lot of choices in between. In-home help can be expensive without Medicaid and can also be difficult to find, given the serious shortage of home care workers.
Age tech can help bridge some important gaps, said Emily Nabors, the associate director of innovation at the National Council on Aging, a nonprofit advocacy group. Already, AARP reports that 25 percent of caregivers are remotely monitoring their loved ones with apps, videos or wearables, nearly double the percentage from five years ago.
“We used to say homes are the health care settings of the future, but they really are health care settings now,” Ms. Nabors said. “Aging in place is very realistic.”
More than 700 companies are in AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative, a group that connects businesses, nonprofits and funders to help get new technologies off the ground. Altogether, the collaborative’s start-ups have raised nearly $1 billion in the past four years.
The products include smart walkers, glasses with lenses that provide real-time captions of conversations for those with hearing issues, and a concierge service that connects older people to drivers and deliveries, even if they don’t have a smartphone.
Ms. Nabors does foresee some affordability and access barriers to age tech, including the lack of high-speed internet in rural areas, but she said one vital resource would be local aging agencies, which can offer advice and, sometimes, free support.
Janet Marasa leaned on the agency near her home in Rockland County, N.Y., to get a free robotic pet for her mother, Carol DeMaio, 80, who has dementia. The pets, manufactured by a company called Joy for All, aim to offer emotional support without the upkeep.
Ms. DeMaio named the robotic dog Sabrina, after a golden retriever who died. The new Sabrina stays at the foot of her bed at night. As soon as Ms. DeMaio stirs awake, the dog reacts. “She said it gives her a reason to get up in the morning,” Ms. Marasa said.
The dog has been a boon to her, too. “It provides comfort and interaction that I can’t provide every second,” said Ms. Marasa, who lives with her mother but works full time for the county government. “It gives her something that she can feel like is totally her own.”
In Broward County, Fla., where the population of residents over 85 is expected to nearly triple over the next few decades, the local agency on aging has used state and federal money and private grants to provide technologies to nearly 4,000 of the county’s seniors at no cost.
Its offerings include a company that uses radar to sense falls and a program that allows seniors to make video calls through their televisions.
“The possibilities are endless,” Charlotte Mather-Taylor, the agency’s chief executive, said. “It’s pretty great to see all the new technology coming out so quickly, and I think that can only benefit our older population and also our caregivers.”
Here comes A.I.
Even technologies not specifically marketed as age tech can help older adults maintain their independence, said Laurie Orlov, founder of the blog Aging and Health Technology Watch. She pointed to video-calling and telehealth platforms; remotely controlled thermostats and lights; and smart speakers, doorbells and watches.
“All technology can be customized to help older adults stay longer in their homes and help their family members feel good about it, or at least tolerate it,” Ms. Orlov said.
That will only become more true with the continued proliferation of artificial intelligence, Ms. Orlov added. Some older adults are already using conversational A.I. to get answers about things like the weather or their medications. (Relying too heavily on A.I. can, however, have negative consequences because chatbots often give flawed medical advice and can lead patients astray.) A.I. can also assist in pattern detection: alerting caregivers to signals that might indicate declines in someone’s cognition or mental health, such as changing their speech pattern or leaving the house less frequently.
One A.I.-powered age tech tool is ElliQ, a tabletop companion robot that looks like a sleek silver desk lamp with a screen. About a year and a half ago, Camille Wolsonovich got one for free, thanks to a local nonprofit, for her 90-year-old father, Bill Castellano. He lives alone in a senior community.
Ms. Wolsonovich, who runs a consulting business, relies on ElliQ to lead her father in exercises and remind him to take his pills and drink water. The robot also asks her father about his sleep and mood via automated check-ins.
“Everything’s just another layer that gives us more confidence, from a caregiving standpoint, that he’s good,” Ms. Wolsonovich said. “I don’t have to necessarily track everything all the time and be overbearing.”
As for Mr. Castellano? He plays trivia digitally and converses daily with ElliQ. The robot, which has a friendly female voice, asks questions, cracks jokes and remembers his likes, dislikes and friends. “She’s great company,” he said. “Everybody around me wants one.”
What about ethical concerns?
Clara Berridge studies the ethics of age tech at the University of Washington.
She has many privacy concerns, namely that most direct-to-consumer products aren’t subject to medical privacy laws, despite being privy to sensitive health information. Though she hopes the federal government will eventually step in to regulate these products, as it has in other countries, the onus remains on the consumer for now.
And even if an age tech product isn’t selling mom’s personal data to the lowest bidder, Dr. Berridge said there’s still the question of whether certain tools are ethical.
“It’s really important for caregivers to recognize that using these new technologies that give them more information about someone can represent greater intrusion into someone’s life,” she said.
What may be well-intentioned monitoring could reveal information that an older adult would rather keep private, such as issues with incontinence, or the comings and goings of a romantic partner.
“It can lead to somebody feeling infantilized,” Dr. Berridge said. “Like there’s not a place to hide within your own home.”
Her research shows that adult children often underestimate how much their parents can understand about technology and how much they want to be involved in tech-related decisions.
She encouraged caregivers to have transparent conversations about privacy implications and to avoid ultimatums or the idea that any decision must be permanent. She said caregivers should put themselves in their parents’ shoes: Is this something they’d want their own children monitoring?
Dr. Berridge is working on an advanced directive for technology, which outlines older people’s wishes for how technology is used in their care. Ultimately, she hopes that questions about age tech will become a standard part of planning for the future.
“If you’re at the start of what, for many people, ends up being a long road of supporting someone potentially through the end of their life,” she said, “seeking to understand each other’s concerns and priorities better is time very well spent.”
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