Doctors May Have Tried to Treat Cancer in Ancient Egypt

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• May 29, 2024
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A 4,000-year-old skull provides evidence that ancient Egyptians might have tried to treat cancer, a new study claims.

Microscopic observation of the s...

Remains Show Prehistoric Peoples Cared for Those With Down Syndrome

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• February 21, 2024
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Rare gene-driven defects such as Down syndrome have occurred among human beings for many thousands of years, a new analysis of ancient DNA has revealed.

Not only did the birth defects exist, but these infants were often buried with care by their community. That suggests ...

Contrary to Popular Belief, 1918 Flu Did Not Target the Healthy Young

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• October 10, 2023
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It has long been believed that the 1918 flu pandemic disproportionately affected healthy young adults, but a study of human remains tells a different story.

Together, Canadian and American researchers found that preexisting medical conditions like asthma and lower i...

Did Vlad the Impaler, Inspiration for Dracula, Shed Tears of Blood?

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• August 18, 2023
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The 15th century prince who inspired the literary vampire Dracula may have had medical issues that caused him to cry tears of blood, according to researchers unearthing this ancient mystery.

The prince, who was also a military leader, was known as Vlad III, Voivode of Wa...

Parasites Plagued Ancient Reptiles 200 Million Years Ago

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• August 10, 2023
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Scientists have found evidence of ancient parasites preserved in the dung of an aquatic predator from more than 200 million years ago.

The ancient predator -- believed to be an extinct crocodile-like reptile called a phytosaur -- was infected with nematodes and multiple ...

Biotech Company Settles With Family of Henrietta Lacks, Whose Cells Revolutionized Medicine

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• August 1, 2023
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Cervical cells from Henrietta Lacks, a cancer patient who died more than 70 years ago, are a cornerstone of modern medicine, but her family has never been compensated for the cells taken without her ...

From a Lock of Hair, Beethoven's Genome Gives Clues to Health, Family

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• March 22, 2023
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Genetic analysis of Ludwig van Beethoven's hair has provided new clues into the cause of the great composer's death in 1827 -- as well as evidence of a family scandal.

The analysis revealed that Beethoven suffered from a hepatitis B infection that could have contributed ...

Study Pushes Back Smallpox Origins Another 2,000 Years

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• January 11, 2023
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While the origins of smallpox has remained a mystery for centuries, researchers now believe that it dates back 2,000 years earlier than previously thought.

Until recently, the earliest genetic evidence of smallpox, the variola virus, was from the 1600s. And in 2020, rese...

Special Human-Cat Bond May Have Started 10,000 Years Ago

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• December 8, 2022
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That special link you may have with a purring, four-legged friend has been going on between the species for millennia, new research shows.

The human-cat relationship was probably forged over a shared interest in rats more than 10,000 years ago, investigators say. As farm...

400-Year-Old Mummy Reveals a Nobleman's Child, Kept From the Sun

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• October 26, 2022
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A "virtual autopsy"of a mummified 17th century Austrian infant has shed new light on Renaissance childhood -- as well as the importance of vitamin D to health.

The researchers used CT s...

Archaeologists Discover Evidence of Surgical Amputation Performed 30,000 Years Ago

• By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• September 12, 2022
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Skeletal remains of a young adult discovered in a remote cave in Borneo appear to be the oldest known case of surgical amputation.

Australian and Indonesian researchers estimate the bones are at least 31,000 years old. It appears that the young adult lost his foot and lo...

Pious Parasites: Medieval Monks Battled Nasty Gut Germs

• By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• August 19, 2022
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Medieval monks were much more wormy than average folks, a new archaeological analysis has revealed.

Those living in medieval Cambridge were nearly twice as likely to be infected by

Prehistoric People Drank Animal Milk, Despite Lactose Intolerance

• Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
• July 27, 2022
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Researchers have long suspected that humans evolved to tolerate dairy products in order to reap their health benefits. Now a new study refutes that idea.

Around one-third of the world's population possesses a gut enzyme that allows them to digest lactose, a sugar in milk...

Scientists Pinpoint Origins of the Black Death

• By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter
• June 15, 2022
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A centuries-old mystery as to the origins of the Black Death has been solved, according to an international team of scientists.

They said the plague pandemic that killed up to 60% of people in Europe, the Middle East and northern Africa in the mid-1300s originated in cen...