Today’s Cancer Risks – Much the Same as 3000 Years Ago?

Well, everyone — here we are three months into 2014 and it’s spring already! There is an old adage that states, “Nothing is new under the sun.” Each spring, for example, is new — but the cycle of the seasons remains the same. Nature keeps repeating itself.

In the same way, there are certain medical conditions and diseases that have been a part of human life throughout recorded history. If you recall, in Volume 1 of the SSCC we discussed the Ebers Papyrus, which are records that appear to have been written in approximately 1600 B.C. — although the sources of their information are believed to date back to 2500 B.C.  In these records not only do we see references to cancer in human beings, but also descriptions of cancer surgeries and several mechanical, pharmacological and magical treatments for the disease as well.

This week we have amazing news from researchers at Durham University in England and the British Museum of London who announced they have discovered evidence of cancer in the remains of a 3000-year-old skeleton recovered in the Sudan last year. Using radiography and a scanning electron microscope these researchers managed to obtain clear images of cancerous tumors throughout the bones.

This is important because compared to other diseases, evidence of cancer in archaeological records has been virtually absent. As a result, there is a school of thought that believes the development of cancer today primarily is attributable to our modern lifestyles and the fact that we are living longer. While these certainly are factors, they are not the only factors. Indeed, researchers speculate that the cause of cancer in this 3000-year-old body may have been the result of genetic factors, an infectious disease or environmental carcinogens such as smoke from wood fires. Does that sound familiar??

In any case, perhaps our present day “causes” for cancer are not so different from those of the past. And, if nothing is new under the sun, let’s embrace that past — our past — and learn from it. As Michaela Binder, a Durham Ph.D. student who led the excavation and examination of the skeleton said, “Insights gained from archaeological human remains like these can really help us to understand the evolution and history of modern diseases.” Now, that’s a job well done!

TAKE THE COURSE AND TAKE CHARGE!