Innovative approach to the verification of the alleged pregnancy and cancer in the Warsaw mummy: international case study with extended research

Abstract

The collective international case study of a mummy presented in this paper is to our knowledge the first of its kind. At its core is an independent reassessment, by acknowledged professionals, of radiological material from a mummified woman (now in Warsaw) who had been claimed to have been pregnant and suffering from a neoplastic condition. Despite two studies dismissing these claims on scientific grounds, both the pregnancy and the cancer theories were repeated and sustained, overwhelming any opposing opinions in the matter. A media sensation only contributed to this. Using a cloud-based platform, the participants reexamined the original radiological data, responding to a survey questionnaire prepared for the purpose. Their independent responses consistently upheld the absence of any indications of either a fetus or cancer in the subject of study. The joint case study also provided opportunity for additional individual analysis of the last points raised by the authors of the pregnancy theory, which were dismissed as well. However, efforts at a comprehensive explanation of the pelvic contents, involving identification of the inserted material, did not prove conclusive and will be continued. Addressing issues of responsible science, a part of this study atypically concerns the role of popular media, which in this particular case affected even the scientific approach, not to mention public reception. The study is another strong call for an interdisciplinary approach in bioarchaeology, particularly in mummy studies.