Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone tumor in humans. For the first time, it was identified on the misshapen fibula of a dinosaur by researchers at the Royal Ontario Museum. The centrosaur was 2 meters tall and lived 77 million years ago in North America, according to the study published in The Lancet Oncology.
To detect the tumor, the scientists performed high-resolution scans of the fossil and examined thin sections under a microscope, before reconstructing it in 3D using a technique called computed tomography, reports Futura-Sciences.
“Dinosaurs are seen as mythical and powerful creatures,” said David Evans, one of the co-authors of the article, at The Canadian Press. “But these were animals that suffered from the same injuries and diseases that we see today in animals and humans.”
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