Epidemiologic study of tumors in dinosaurs.
Occasional reports in isolated fragments of dinosaur bones have suggested that tumors might represent a population phenomenon. Previous study of humans has demonstrated that vertebral radiology is a powerful diagnostic tool for population screening. The epidemiology of tumors in dinosaurs was here investigated by fluoroscopically screening dinosaur vertebrae for evidence of tumors. Computerized tomography (CT) and cross-sections were obtained where appropriate. Among more than 10,000 specimens x-rayed, tumors were only found in Cretaceous hadrosaurs (duck-billed dinosaurs). These included hemangiomas and metastatic cancer (previously identified in dinosaurs), desmoplastic fibroma, and osteoblastoma. The epidemiology of tumors in dinosaurs seems to reflect a familial pattern. A genetic propensity or environmental mutagens are suspected.
Rothschild
B M
BM
Arthritis Center of Northeast Ohio, 5500 Market Street, Youngstown, OH 44512, USA. bmr@neoucom.edu
Tanke
D H
DH
Helbling
M
M
Martin
L D
LD
D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D025061:Dinosaurs; D005580:Fossils; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000662:veterinary*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed