Oldest known case of metastasizing prostate carcinoma diagnosed in the skeleton of a 2,700-year-old Scythian king from Arzhan (Siberia, Russia) (original) (raw)
Related papers
Metastatic prostate carcinoma from Imperial Rome (1st-2nd century A.D.)
2018
This study describes and discusses a rare case of metastatic carcinoma that affected the skeleton of an adult male recovered in the necropolis of Casal Bertone in Rome (Italy). The necropolis, which dates back to the Imperial Age (1st to 2nd century AD), is located near some residential structures and a large place identified as a fullery (fullonica). Methods: Anthropological and paleopathological studies of the skeletal remains were performed via careful macroscopic, microscopic, radiological (X-ray and CT scan), and histological investigation. Results: The skeleton displayed mixed osteoclastic and osteoblastic lesions that mainly involved the axial bones, in particular the sternum, the ribs, the spine, and the scapular and pelvic girdles. The anatomical distribution and the destructive and proliferative nature of the lesions suggested diffuse metastases arising from a soft-tissue primary cancer. The age and sex of the individual, as well as radiographic and histological pictures, allowed diagnosis of an advanced prostate cancer with extensively diffused bone metastases. Conclusion: At present, this is the only case of prostate cancer from the Imperial Age recovered in Rome.
Metastatic Prostate Carcinoma from Imperial Rome (1st to 2nd Centuries AD)
Pathobiology : journal of immunopathology, molecular and cellular biology, 2018
This study describes and discusses a rare case of metastatic carcinoma that affected the skeleton of an adult male recovered in the necropolis of Casal Bertone in Rome (Italy). The necropolis, which dates back to the Imperial Age (1st to 2nd century AD), is located near some residential structures and a large place identified as a fullery (fullonica). Anthropological and paleopathological studies of the skeletal remains were performed via careful macroscopic, microscopic, radiological (X-ray and CT scan), and histological investigation. The skeleton displayed mixed osteoclastic and osteoblastic lesions that mainly involved the axial bones, in particular the sternum, the ribs, the spine, and the scapular and pelvic girdles. The anatomical distribution and the destructive and proliferative nature of the lesions suggested diffuse metastases arising from a soft-tissue primary cancer. The age and sex of the individual, as well as radiographic and histological pictures, allowed diagnosis ...
Prostate metastatic bone cancer in an Egyptian Ptolemaic mummy, a proposed radiological diagnosis
International Journal of Paleopathology, 2011
There is great interest in the history and occurrence of human cancer in antiquity and particularly in ancient Egyptian populations. Despite the number of Egyptian mummies and skeletons studied through various means, evidence of primary or metastatic cancer lesions is rare. The Digital Radiography and Multi Detector Computerized Tomography (MDCT) scans of a male Ptolemaic Egyptian mummy, from the Museu Nacional de Arqueologia (MNA) in Lisbon displayed several focal dense bone lesions located mainly on the spine, pelvis and proximal extremities. The exceptional detail of the MDCT images allowed the proposed diagnosis of osteoblastic metastatic disease, with the prostate being the main hypothesis of origin. These radiologic findings in a wrapped mummy, to the best of our knowledge, have never previously been documented, and could be the oldest evidence of this disease, as well as being the cause of death.
Probable prostate cancer in a pre-Incaic individual from Pukara de la Cueva, northwestern Argentina
Anthropologischer Anzeiger, 2015
Prostate carcinoma is a common malignant neoplasia that mostly metastasizes to bone in males. Nonetheless, the number of paleopathological cases reported is very small and only two from South American individuals, almost of them being identified in Europe. The purpose of this paper is to document the lesions identified in a new Pre-Columbian (around 1400 AD) individual that corresponds to a middle-aged male from Pukara de la Cueva, Jujuy province, in the Northwest region of Argentina. The skeleton was found disarticulated but it is nearly complete and well preserved. The overall character of the lesions observed is predominantly proliferative in nature, but osteolytic and mixed patterns were also detected in both axial and appendicular skeleton. Macroscopically, this overall pattern and the distribution of the lesions are compatible with a secondary cancer. Radiological examination showed multiple dense areas with sclerotic borders in several bones, which confirm the previous diagnosis of prostate carcinoma. The exuberance and dissemination of the lesions all over the skeleton led infer individual cachexy implying that he would have been assisted by his family and/or social group during the chronic process. Carcinogenic risk factors are also discussed in order to ascertain the possible causes of the disease. This analysis adds a new evidence of a Pre-Columbian carcinoma in a South American native population and enhances the possibilities of an adequate differential diagnosis.
Extensive osteolytic and osteoblastic lesions were observed on the skeletal remains of an adult male excavated from an Early Bronze Age cemetery dated to 4556 +32 years BP, located in the Cis-Baikal region of Siberia (Russian Federation). Lytic lesions ranged in size from several mm to over 60 mm in diameter and had irregular, moth-eaten borders. Many of these lesions destroyed trabecular bone, though a hollowed shell of cortical bone often remained observable. Radiographic analysis revealed numerous lytic lesions within trabecular bone that had not yet affected the cortex. Blastic lesions were identified as spiculated lines, bands, or nodules of mostly immature (woven) bone formed at irregular intervals. Anatomical elements with the greatest involvement included those of the axial skeleton (skull, vertebrae, sacrum, ribs, and sternum) as well as proximal appendicular elements (ossa coxae, proximal femora, clavicles, scapulae, and proximal humeri). Osteocoalescence of destructive foci was observed on the ilium and frontal bone, with the largest lesion found on the right ilium. Differential diagnoses include metastatic carcinoma, mycotic infections, tuberculosis, Langerhan’s cell histiocytosis, and multiple myeloma. Based on lesion appearance and distribution, age and sex of the individual, as well as pathogen endemism, the most likely diagnostic option for this set of lesions is metastatic carcinoma. The age and sex of this individual and appearance of the lesions may reflect carcinoma of the lung or, possibly, prostate. This represents one of the earliest cases of metastatic carcinoma worldwide and the oldest case documented thus far from Northeast Asia.
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. 1200BC) 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.
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. 1200BC) 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.
PLoS ONE, 2014
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. 1200BC) 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.
Anticancer research
Molecular paleopathology has become an emerging field that helps to characterize molecular markers of past disease. Especially highly sensitive genetic techniques such as PCR are an important means of unraveling changes in ancient DNA extracted from bone tissue, teeth and mummified soft tissue. In the present study, excavated bone material from the skeleton of a Scythian sovereign, morphologically and immunohistochemically suspicious of a metastatic prostate carcinoma, was analyzed by PCR for amplifiable human gene sequences. Short sequences of the human GADD153 DNA repair gene and p53 tumor suppressor gene were detectable which revealed the absence of mutations according to the data of automatic sequencing. Using bisulfite-treated DNA from the bone, methylation-specific PCR detected hypermethylated promoter sequences of the p14ARF tumor suppressor gene. In summary, these data show that it is possible: a) to amply short human DNA stretches from 2,500-year-old bone material, b) to de...