Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-2023
Abstract
Metastatic bone disease significantly impacts cancer-related morbidity and mortality nowadays. Herein, we present an adult individual, probably a female, with multiple osteolytic lesions, of variable sizes, distributed predominantly in the axial skeleton but also affecting elements of the appendicular region. This individual also exhibits atypical manifestations of metastatic bone disease, in the form of acrometastases—metastases in the extremities, which are uncommon events in current clinical settings. The individual's skeletonized remains were exhumed from a crypt in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit (Espírito Santo), Loures, Portugal, and have been dated from the 16th to 19th centuries. The multiple osteolytic lesions, noted both by direct and radiological observations, are discussed to expand the knowledge regarding disease manifestations in the past but also to reflect on disability and suffering in past individuals affected by oncologic ailments.
Recommended Citation
Antunes-Ferreira, N., Curate, F., Prates, C., Bertrand, B., & Marques, C. (2023). The rarest among the rare? Acrometastases and disability in the past and beyond. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 33(6), 1080–1087. https://doi.org/10.1002/oa.3258
Publication Title
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology
DOI
10.1002/oa.3258
Comments
Original published version available at https://doi.org/10.1002/oa.3258
Read published version freely: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/MSVSF38JMDTHZZT6SQVY?target=10.1002/oa.3258