Surgical treatment of head and neck cancers in the ancient world
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1Department of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery,Princess Royal Hospital,Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust,UK.
Objective:
This paper attempts to chart the history of head and neck cancers and their surgical treatment, starting from ancient Egypt and concluding with Galen.
Conclusion:
The ancient Egyptians appear to have treated head and neck cancers with local applications. The ancient Greek corpus contains a reference to treating pharyngeal carcinoma with cautery, but the description is too vague to establish the diagnosis conclusively. The ancient Romans moved away from surgical treatments, with Galen establishing a prejudice against surgery that would last through the Middle Ages.
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