What is a radioisotope BBC Bitesize?
The nuclei of radioactive atoms are unstable. They breakdown and change into a completely different type of atom. This is called radioactive decay. For example, carbon-14 decays to nitrogen-14 when it emits beta radiation. This is called the half-life of the radioactive isotope .
How does radiotherapy work BBC Bitesize?
Radiotherapy: killing cancerous tumours It is administered in two main ways: from outside the body using X-rays or gamma rays from radioactive cobalt; from inside the body by putting radioactive materials into the tumour, or close to it.
What is radiation therapy GCSE?
Although ionising radiation can cause cancer, high doses can be directed at cancerous cells to kill them. This is called radiotherapy. About 40 per cent of people with cancer undergo radiotherapy as part of their treatment.
How does radiation cause cancer GCSE?
Radioactive materials are hazardous. Nuclear radiation can ionise chemicals within a body, which changes the way the cells behave. It can also deposit large amounts of energy into the body, which can damage or destroy cells completely. Radioactive iodine can build up and cause cancer, particularly during growth.
What type of radiation is used in radioactive dating?
Radiocarbon (14C) dating All living organisms take up carbon from their environment including a small proportion of the radioactive isotope 14C (formed from nitrogen-14 as a result of cosmic ray bombardment).
What is another way of detecting radiation?
Radiation cannot be detected by human senses. The most common type of radiation detector is a Geiger-Mueller (GM) tube, also called a Geiger counter.
Why is radiation bad for the body?
Radiation can damage the DNA in our cells. High doses of radiation can cause Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS) or Cutaneous Radiation Injuries (CRI). High doses of radiation could also lead to cancer later in life.
What are the dangers of radiation?
Exposure to very high levels of radiation, such as being close to an atomic blast, can cause acute health effects such as skin burns and acute radiation syndrome (“radiation sickness”). It can also result in long-term health effects such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.
How is radiation used in medicine?
Nuclear medicine procedures help detect and treat diseases by using a small amount of radioactive material, called a radiopharmaceutical. Some radiopharmaceuticals are used with imaging equipment to detect diseases. Radiopharmaceuticals can also be placed inside the body near a cancerous tumor to shrink or destroy it.
Which type of radiation has the longest range in air?
Gamma radiation
Gamma radiation, unlike alpha or beta, does not consist of any particles, instead consisting of a photon of energy being emitted from an unstable nucleus. Having no mass or charge, gamma radiation can travel much farther through air than alpha or beta, losing (on average) half its energy for every 500 feet.
What kind of radioisotopes are used in cancer diagnostics?
Example of Radiotracer Used in Cancer Diagnostics: Technetium Technetium-99m is referred to as the “workhorse of modern medical imaging”, because it accounts for about 80% of the world’s radioactive isotopes in nuclear medicine, 90% of which is used in diagnosis scans.
How are radioactive isotopes used in everyday life?
Radioactive isotopes are used for blood flow monitoring, cancer treatment, paper mills, carbon dating and smoke alarms. Each isotope used in these applications has a characteristic half-life. When an unstable nucleus gives out an alpha or beta particle, the nucleus turns into the nucleus of a new element. This process is called radioactive decay.
How is the half life of a radioisotope determined?
The half-life is a measure of time (GCSE Bitesize, 2014) and can be determined from: 1 Time taken for radioisotope nuclei in a sample to halve 2 Time taken for count rate from a radioactive isotope to fall to half More
What are the complications of radioisotopes in cancer?
The main reported complication is “boredom”, as fatal cancers disappear for many patients. Studies for prostate and breast cancer metastasized to bone and prostate and other cancers metastasized to other organs are ongoing with promising results in Europe. “I can treat any patient I wish”, G. Paganelli, Director, European Institute of Oncology.