Scientists Have Discovered a New Organ In The Center Of The Human Head

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Doctors, scientists and researchers have been studying the human anatomy for hundreds of centuries, but very recently, a group of medical researchers  have made an astonishing discovery. Apparently there’s a new organ that happens to be located in the center of the human head, one that’s been there the whole time just waiting to be found.

The discovery was reported in Radiotherapy and Oncology, where researchers reported that doctors in the Netherlands accidentally encountered the organ. They were examining 100 patients for prostate cancer using a progressive type of scan known as the PSMA PET/CT. When this scan is used alongside radioactive glucose injections, tumors within the body are highlighted.


It was during these scans when the researchers would find something else burrowed within the rear of the nasopharynx. The nasopharynx is described as the upper portion of the throat behind the nose. It is also one part of three within the pharynx, and it works as an airway in the respiratory system. The nasopharynx also contains the adenoids, also known as pharyngeal tonsils.

According to researchers, the new organ looks like a baffling set of salivary glands hidden within the human head. It’s shocking to most that this mysterious body part was only discovered in 2020, having been missed for hundreds of years. Before this new organ was discovered, there were only three known major salivary glands, namely the parotid, submandibular, and sublingual glands.

According to Wouter Vogel, a radiation oncologist from the Netherlands Cancer Institute where the organ was discovered, explained, “People have three sets of large salivary glands, but not there. As far as we knew, the only salivary or mucous glands in the nasopharynx are microscopically small, and up to 1,000 are evenly spread out throughout the mucosa. So, imagine our surprise when we found these.”

But since the discovery, a fourth gland can now be added to the list, which is located behind the nose and above the palate. Notably, the location is also close to the center of the human head.

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First author of the study, oral surgeon Matthijs Valstar from the University of Amsterdam said, “The two new areas that lit up turned out to have other characteristics of salivary glands as well. We call them tubarial glands, referring to their anatomical location [above the torus tubarius].” 

Incredibly, these tubarial glands were seen in every single one of the 100 PSMA PET/CT scans done on the patients, which revealed the ‘visible draining duct openings towards the nasopharyngeal wall.’

The researchers also wrote in the paper, “To our knowledge, this structure did not fit prior anatomical descriptions.”

The researchers also felt compelled to note that there are approximately 1,000 additional minor salivary glands that sit all throughout the oral cavity and digestive tract. But according to Scientific Alert, these cannot be seen though without a microscope.

According to researchers, this newly detected organ was probably missed all these years due to its incredibly poor anatomical location, being quite inaccessible since it’s under the base of the skull. Medical professionals also note that they may have noticed the duct openings before without realizing that the structures were actually a part of a bigger gland system. It was only due to modern technology that allows advanced PSMA-PET/CT imaging techniques, granting researchers the chance to finally see the macroscopical organ.


Although the study will still need to be repeated and validated, one pathologist explains that if it’s authenticated, it could completely change the way the medical world sees diseases in that portion of the skull.

While she wasn’t part of the original study, pathologist Valeria Fitzhugh from Rutgers University told the New York Times, “It seems like they may be onto something. If it’s real, it could change the way we look at disease in this region.” And at the same time, the study also shares that sparing these glands during radiotherapy could even improve quality of life.

 

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