Closing In On Cancer

MIXING MEDICINE AND RELIGION, prescribing pills and pigs' ears, the physicians of Ancient Egypt treated patients for several forms of cancer. Hieroglyphic inscriptions and papyri manuscripts distinguish between benign and malignant tumors, and reveal that surface tumors were removed surgically. For cancers of the stomach and the uterus, compounds of barley, pigs' ears and other ingredients were ordered. Ointments, enemas, castor oil, suppositories, poultices and parts of animals were among commonly dispensed medications.

Egyptian Medicine and Religion
The practices of medicine and religion in ancient Egypt were so intermingled that all deities were associated with some form of health or illness. Prominent among the gods and goddesses were Isis and her falcon-headed son Horus; Thoth, a physician to the gods; and Imhotep, the Pharaoh's doctor, who eventually was deified. The religious emphasis on special care for the dead reinforced the physician's authority.

The Earliest Known Descriptions of Cancer
Seven papyri, discovered and deciphered late in the 19th century, provided the first direct knowledge of Egyptian medical practice. Two—known as the "Edwin Smith" and "George Elbers" papyri—contain descriptions of cancer written about 1600 B.C., and are believed to date from sources as early as 2500 B.C. The Smith papyrus describes surgery, while the Ebers' outlines pharmacological, mechanical and magical treatments.

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						Egyptian Medicine and Religion The practices of medicine and religion in ancient Egypt were so intermingled that all deities were associated with some form of health or illness. Prominent among the gods and goddesses were Isis and her falcon-headed son Horus; Thoth, a physician to the gods; and Imhotep, the Pharaoh's doctor, who eventually was deified. The religious emphasis on special care for the dead reinforced the physician's authority.

		The Earliest Known Descriptions of Cancer Seven papyri, discovered and deciphered late in the 19th century, provided the first direct knowledge of Egyptian medical practice. Two—known as the "Edwin Smith" and "George Elbers" papyri—contain descriptions of cancer written about 1600 B.C., and are believed to date from sources as early as 2500 B.C. The Smith papyrus describes surgery, while the Ebers' outlines pharmacological, mechanical and magical treatments.

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