Why does an ankh occasionally appear on Docs forehead? Does Doc age?
In Doctor Strange #4, Doc passed a test by the Ancient One and defeated Death- or more accurately, uber-accepted Death. As a result, from that moment forward, Doc stopped aging. “Death may come only from without, in battle- and not from within.” (The Ancient One had once passed the same test himself, and lived 600 years.) Also from that moment forward, a glowing ankh appears on Doc’s forehead when he is in a situation of great danger and his death is imminent- or as it is nicely worded in Sorcerer Supreme #45, “when Doc most needs a reaffirmation of life.” Just a shtick to add drama to a situation, IMO.
