Fibrous dysplasia is the most common bone cancer in humans today, but according to the lead researcher, evidence of the cancer is very rare in the human fossil record.
A team of scientists, led by David Fryar from the University of Kansas, reported this week (June 5) in the journal PLOS ONE on the discovery of the first example of a cancerous tumor common in our time in the remains of a 120-year-old Neanderthal.
The discovery of fibrous dysplasia dates back the first evidence of this type of cancer to a period many times older than the earliest examples of bone cancer in modern humans 1,000-4,000 years ago. A rib infected with cancer was found in the Krapina region of Croatia. These are incomplete remains of a person and therefore the researchers cannot know all the details about the health effect of the cancer on the individual.
Fibrous dysplasia is the most common bone cancer in humans today, but according to Fryar, evidence of the cancer is very rare in the human fossil record. This case shows that even though the Neanderthals lived in an uncontaminated environment, they were exposed to the same types of cancer as humans living today.
The average lifespan of Neanderthals was about half that of modern humans in developed countries, and they were exposed to environmental factors different from those of today. "Given these factors, cases of neoplastic disease were rare in prehistoric human populations. On the other hand, the identification of a 120-year-old Neanderthal rib infected with cancer is surprising and may provide new insights into the disease's connection to neoplastic diseases."
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A very interesting discovery! I want to see how and where they will continue this research, maybe more directions on different effects of cancer on Neanderthal man, and whether it affected him differently.
By the way, the law's last name is Fryar, conjures up strange thoughts, doesn't it? 😉
Fibrous dysplasia is a benign tumor *not* malignant (=non-cancerous).
Also in the article it is described as a benign bone tumor.