An Egyptian woman believed to be the first case of an embalmed pregnant mummy may have died of cancer, scientists have said. A mummy discovered in the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes in the early 19th century – The capital of the Egyptian New Kingdom named Luxor – Donated to the University of Warsaw, Poland in 1826, it was tested as part of a study called “Project Mummy”.
After reconstructing the mummy’s skull in 3D, scientists were able to observe a 7 mm hole behind the left eye socket. The results of the analysis of the examination data also show changes in the craniofacial bones, which are “associated with activities such as nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) activity” that develops in an area of the nose and throat, the scientists said. Said, quoted The Independent.
According to Marzena Ozarek-Szilke, an archaeologist and anthropologist at the Medical University of Warsaw and co-director of the “Mummy Project,” this unusual situation is where a tumor or wound grows and separates the surrounding bone from the rest. pit
“Cancer was a direct cause of her death, but it’s hard to say for sure,” Ozarek-Silke said, adding that it’s possible pregnancy played a role in the woman’s death.
According to the researchers, it is rare to find out how mummified people die, so this is an important step. However, they point out that much more needs to be understood about why the mummy was found in the wrong coffin and who it was.
After opening the sarcophagus for the first time, Polish investigators were surprised to find a mummified woman in someone else’s coffin and began examining the remains. In April 2021, a study was published that CT scans of the mummy revealed the remains of a fetus in her uterus, making her the world’s first pregnant mummy. The team said the woman died in the 28th week of pregnancy.
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