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6.5 Uses and dangers of radioactivity

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Question 20

A patient is treated using high-energy gamma radiation aimed at a tumour. The gamma source is outside the patient's body during the treatment and is returned to its container afterwards. The source has an activity of 240 TBq240\ \text{TBq}240 TBq and a half-life of 5 years.

a.

State the property of gamma radiation that allows it to reach a tumour from outside the body.

[1]
b.

Explain why healthy cells in the path of the gamma radiation may be damaged.

[2]
c.

Calculate the activity of the source after 10 years.

[2]
d.

Explain why the treatment does not make the patient radioactive.

[2]
Markscheme

6.5 Uses and dangers of radioactivity Questions

  1. GCSE
  2. /Physics
  3. /6.5 Uses and dangers of radioactivity

97 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Physics 6.5 Uses and dangers of radioactivity, covering 6.5.1 Uses of radioactivity, 6.5.2 Dangers of ionising radiation and precautions, 6.5.3 Half-life and radiation dangers, 6.5.4 Safety precautions for radiation exposure, and 6.5.5 Contamination and irradiation. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.

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