Egyptian mummy 'first to have diseased heart'

An Egyptian princess who lived 3,500 years ago is thought to be the first known person to have developed heart disease, say researchers. Doctors believe the princess would have needed a heart bypass if she were living now. Scans showed she had extensive blockages in arteries leading to her heart, brain, stomach and legs. The researchers say her case shows heart disease pre-dates a modern lifestyle. Cardiac researchers from the US teamed up with colleagues at Al Azhar University in Cairo to analyse the remains of 52 mummies, including those of the princess. They performed full-body scans on mummies at the National Museum of Antiquities in Cairo. They had found evidence of hardening of the arteries in almost half the mummies scanned, researchers told a medical conference in Amsterdam