Tumours and cancers in Graeco-Roman times

In Graeco-Roman times all tumours (Greek: onkoi, abnormal swellings) were considered to be of inflammatory origin, the result of unfavourable hurnoural fluxes, and caused by an extravascular outpouring of fluid into tissue spaces. The neoplastic nature of tumours is a more recent concept, barely two centuries old. In Hippocratic literature tumours were mainly classified as karkin6mata, phumata, and oidemata. Phumata included a large variety of tumours, inflammatory and neoplastic in origin, and mostly benign (in modern terms), while oidemata were soft, painless tumours and even included generalised oedema (dropsy). Although all categories possibly included occasional cancers, the vast majority of what appears to have been malignant tumours were called karkinoi karkinomata (Latin: cancrum/carcinoma). There was, however, no recognition of benign and malignant, primary and secondary tumours, in the modem sense

The epidemic of Athens, 430 - 426 BC

The Athenian epidemic of 430 - 426 BC, at the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War, caused the death of the great statesman, Pericles, decimated the population and contributed significantly to the decline and fall of classical Greece. In his remarkable documentation of the epidemic, Thucydides (who survived the disease) not only left us a clear clinical picture of the pestilence but also identified its infectious nature and the fact that it conferred at least partial immunity on survivors. As confirmed by a large number of scholars who studied the subject, Thucydides' description does not accurately fit any existing disease, but we suggest that analysis of the signs and symptoms, considered in conjunction with significant epidemiological evidence, narrows down the many possibilities to epidemic typhus, plague, arboviral disease (e.g. Rift Valley fever) and smallpox. Typhus and smallpox fit best, but we favour the latter for reasons given. Unless further primary sources of information become available (and this seems most unlikely), productive speculation as to the cause of Thucydides' epidemic has probably reached the end of the road

The impact of competition vs cooperation between subsidiaries within a multinational corporation

This research seeks to determine the impact of headquarter control, rent- seeking behaviour, inter-subsidiary cooperation and competition on multination corporation (MNC) business performance. The research presents a framework for MNCs to structure its headquarter-subsidiary and subsidiary-subsidiary relationships to best support its global profit and shareholder value maximisation goal. The study used a quantitative research design to survey all MNCs operating within South Africa with headquarters in Europe, Japan or the United States of America. A survey (on-line questionnaire) measured the perceived level of subsidiary autonomy (headquarter control), rent-seeking behaviour, inter- subsidiary cooperation, inter-subsidiary competition and MNC performance (increase in domestic market share) within each subsidiary. An objective measure of MNC performance (global return on shareholder funds) was also included to confirm the validity of the research findings. The study used a multiple linear regression model to analyse the data. The research study found that a business strategy that promotes high levels of both inter-subsidiary cooperation and competition will maximise business performance. The study also confirmed that headquarter control constrains rent-seeking behaviour, whilst rent-seeking behaviour will harm MNC performance. The study, however, found that high levels of headquarter control has a net negative impact on global MNC performance.Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010.Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)unrestricte

Epidemics of the Roman Empire, 27 BC - AD 476

This article reviews the epidemics that struck Rome and its neighbours during the Roman Empire, starting with the reign of the emperor Augustus (27 BC) and ending with the fall ofRome in AD 476

Tumours and cancers in Graeco-Roman times

In Graeco-Roman times all tumours (Greek: onkoi, abnormal swellings) were considered to be of inflammatory origin, the result of unfavourable hurnoural fluxes, and caused by an extravascular outpouring of fluid into tissue spaces. The neoplastic nature of tumours is a more recent concept, barely two centuries old. In Hippocratic literature tumours were mainly classified as karkin6mata, phumata, and oidemata. Phumata included a large variety of tumours, inflammatory and neoplastic in origin, and mostly benign (in modern terms), while oidemata were soft, painless tumours and even included generalised oedema (dropsy). Although all categories possibly included occasional cancers, the vast majority of what appears to have be~n malignant tumours were called karkinoi karkin6mata (Latin: cancrum/carcinoma). There was, however, no recognition of benign and malignant, primary and secondary tumours, in the modem sense

The death of Cleopatra

The last days and death of Cleopatra and Mark Antony are reviewed. Antony died a slow death after an initially unsuccessful suicide attempt by way of a stab wound to the abdomen. It is argued that Cleopatra (and her two servants) probably committed suicide through poisoning, rather than the bite of an asp (viper) as is popularly believed. Death occurred very rapidly and the bodies showed no recognisable snake bite wounds. Fatal viper bites are characteristically associated with prominent, swollen and haemorrhagic wounds. Cobras may cause rapid death in spite of minor bite wounds, but in order to kill three adults, the snake would have to be large. Legend has it that the reptile was smuggled to Cleopatra in a small basket of figs, which would not have been possible with a large snake

The epidemic of Justinian (AD 542): a prelude to the Middle Ages

The epidemic that struck Constantinople and the surrounding countries during the reign of Justinian in the middle of the 6th century, was the first documented pandemic in history. It marked the beginning of plague as a nosological problem that would afflict the world until the 21st century. The symptoms of the disease, as described by various contemporary writers (especially the historian and confidant of the emperor, Procopius, and the two church historians, John of Ephesus and Euagrius), are discussed. There is little doubt that the disease was the plague. The most common form in which it manifested was bubonic plague, which is spread by infected fleas and is not directly contagious from patient to patient. There is also evidence of septicaemic plague and possibly even pneumonic plague. The disastrous effects of the plague were described vividly by contemporary writers. A major problem was to find ways to dispose of infected corpses. It is estimated that about one third of the population died — a figure comparable to the death rate during the Black Death in the Middle Ages. Famine and inflation, the depopulation of the countryside, and a critical manpower shortage in the army were further effects which all contributed to bringing to a premature end Justinian’s attempt to restore the grandeur of the Roman empire, and precipitating the advent of the Middle Ages

The influence of Christianity on Graeco-Roman medicine up to the Renaissance

In this overview of the effect of early Christianity on empirical medicine in Graeco-Roman times, it is shown that the first two centuries represented peaceful cooperation, since the Christians saw secular medicine as a legitimate form of supernatural cure and not as magic. Christianity brought caring communities with indiscriminate personalised care for the ill and aged. This ultimately led to the creation of hospitals as we know them today. Monastic institutions appeared which often had hospitals, and provided a degree of medical scholarship. When Christianity became the state religion in the 4th century, the Church Fathers became increasingly authoritarian regarding the practice of medicine which was to be based on their interpretation of Galen. Progressive stagnation of scientific development and medicine specifically, set in. However, during the 5th century Nestorian Christians, fleeing from persecution by the Church, settled in Persia where they initiated a  blossoming of medical science during the Golden Age of Islam (8th to 13th centuries), coexisting with the Dark Ages of Medieval Europe. After this period Jewish and Christian doctors reintroduced Arabic versions of the works of the Greek masters from the teaching hospitals of Islam to the young European medical schools at Palermo and Montpellier. The Church which had in the mean time persisted with antiquated dogmas, resented the new teachings from heathen Islam, and responded with reactionary measures against supposed heretics, inter alia by instituting the Inquisition. But after the Reformation and Henry VIII of England’s break with the Vatican, the hegemony of the Church had come apart and Christianity and medicine gradually became realigned according to the realities of the Age of Enlightenment