| *What* were doctors able to base their *explanations* of the *cause* of disease on by *1900*? | By *1900* they relied only on *accurate scientific causes*. They *no longer* referred to the *Four Humours*, *miasmata* or *supernatural* causes |
| What scientists know about *genetics* by 1900? | By *1900* scientists were aware that *genes* came in *pairs*, and that one was *inherited* from each *parent*, and by *1951* they knew that characteristics were passed down from *parents* to *children* |
| Why was the study of *DNA limited* in the *first half *of the *20th century*? | Until 1951 *microscopes* were not *powerful* enough to see *DNA* |
| What *breakthrough* was made in *1951* which helped scientists to get a *better understanding* of *DNA*? | In *1951* an *X-Ray photograph* was taken which showed an *image* of what *DNA* looked like |
| What did *Crick and Watson* discover in *1953*? | Two Cambridge scientists, *Crick and Watson*, used the *X Ray photograph* of DNA to discover the *double helix* structure of DNA |
| Why was the discovery of the *double helix* structure *important*? | This discovery now made it possible to start to *identify* the *parts of DNA* that caused *hereditary diseases* |
| What was the *human genome project*? | In *1990* a project was launched to *'map'* the entire *human genome*. This would provide a *full map* of *all human DNA* |
| *Why* was it *important* to have a *genome map*? | This made it possible for scientists to look for *mistakes* or *mismatches* in the *DNA* of people suffering from *hereditary diseases*, such as *breast cancer*. |
| How was the *genome map* of *practical* benefit to *patients*? | This makes it possible for some women to *prevent* the disease by having a *mastectomy* if they know they have the *breast cancer gene*. However, the disease *cannot* yet be *cured*. |
| Which *lifestyle factors* were Doctors much *more aware of* by *1950*? | By the *1950s* Doctors were much more aware of the *impact* of factors such as *smoking, diet* and *exercise* as *causes* of illness |
| How did awareness of *smoking* as a *cause* of illness *grow* throughout the *20th century*? | *Smoking* was very common by the *1920s*, but from the *1950s* Doctors had seen a huge rise in *lung cancer *cases which they could link to *smoking.* |
| What did further *research* go on to prove about smoking? | Further research showed that *smoking* also led to other *cancers, heart disease* and *tooth decay*. Even *second-hand smoke* was shown to be a *huge problem* |
| How did awareness of *diet* as a *cause* of illness *grow* throughout the *20th century*? | For centuries people had been aware of the need for a *balanced diet*, but in the *20th century* Doctors became particularly concerned about *sugar* and *fat* as the cause of widespread diseases such as *diabetes*. |
| Why did *diet* become a *more serious* problem in the *second half* of the *20th century*? | The *increased* availability of *cheap mass-produced fast food* caused a growing *obesity* crisis |
| Name two other *lifestyle habit*s which have had a *negative impact* on the health of the population in the *20th century* | *Alcohol* and *drug use* have also been identified as a major cause of illnesses such as *cancer* |
| Why was the *government* more prepared to take an *active* role in *preventing* illness by the *start of the 20th century*? | By the *start* of the 20th century the *causes* of disease were much better *understood*, so the *government* was more prepared to *take responsibility* for prevention |
| How has the *government* used *laws* to improve the *health of the people* and *prevent* illness? | They have passed *laws* to improve *air quality* and in some areas *fluoride* has been added to the water to prevent *tooth decay* |
| How has the *government* used *publicity* to improve *public health* and* prevent illness*? | The government pays for *advertising campaigns* against *smoking, binge drinking* and *recreational drug use*, and they encourage people to *eat* more *healthily* |
| How did the government try to deal with the increasing rate of *lung cancer* in the *1960s*? | From the *1960s* the government started to use *campaigns* to discourage *smoking* by making people aware of the *dangers*, and *television advertising* for cigarettes was *banned* in *1965* |
| What steps have been taken *more recently* to tackle the problem of *lung cancer*? | In *2007* smoking was *banned* in the *workplace*, and in *cars carrying children* in 2015. In the same year the *legal age* for buying tobacco was *raised* from 16 to 18 |
| What *steps* have been taken in the 20th century to *prevent* the spread of *infectious diseases*? | The *NHS* provides *vaccinations* against the most common diseases to *all school children*, but their parents have to give their *consent* |
| Which diseases are children *vaccinated* against? | The government started to vaccinate against *diptheria* in 1942, and against *Polio* from the mid-1950s |
| How *successful* have the attempts been to use vaccination against *diptheria*? | By *1950* diptheria had almost been *wiped out* in Britain |
| How *successful* have the attempts been to use vaccination against *Polio*? | There have been *no new cases of Polio* in Britain since *1984* |
| How *successful* have the attempts been to use vaccination against *German Measles*? | *All* school children have access to a *vaccine* against *German measles*, though *some* parents believe that this is *dangerous*, so they choose *not* to have their children *vaccinated*. |
| Huge *progress* was made in medicine in the *19th century*, but which area had *not* improved by *1900*? | Although doctors understood the *cause* of illnesses much better by *1900*, they had not been able to develop any new *treatments* |
| How much *progress* was made in the treatment of infectious diseases in the *20th century*? | In 1900 *25%* of deaths were caused by *infectious diseases*, but in *1990* that had fallen to *1%* |
| Who was *Paul Ehrlich*? | *Paul Ehrlich* was a German physician and scientist. He is famous for discovering a medical treatment called *Magic Bullets* |
| What are *magic bullets*? | *Magic bullets* are drugs which are designed to *target* and kill *one* specific type of *infection* within the body |
| What was the name of the *first* magic bullet? | The *first* magic bullet was called *Salvarsen 606* |
| *How* did Ehrlich *discover* magic bullets? | By *trial and error* - he tested *600 arsenic compounds* to try to find a cure for *Syphilis*. He failed, but in *1909* a Japanese scientist, *Hata*, *retested* them and found that compound *606* did cure *syphilis*. |
| Who was *Gerhard Domagk*? | *Gerard Domagk* discovered the *next* magic bullet - this was a red dye called *Prontosil* |
| How did Domagk *prove* that Prontosil was *effective*? | He discovered that *Prontosil* killed bacterial infections in *mice*. He successfully used this to treat his own *daughter* for *blood poisoning**. *Other magic bullets* were discovered through the *1930s*. |
| Who was *Alexander Fleming*? | *Alexander Fleming* was a British *Doctor* and *medical researcher* |
| *What* is Alexander Fleming *famous* for? | *Alexander Fleming* is famous for discovering *Penicillin* - this was the first *antibiotic* |
| *How* did Fleming *discover Penicillin*? | In *1920* Alexander Fleming isolated a substance called penicillin from a *mould sample* in his lab which appeared to *kill* a wide range of *bacteria* - he had noticed that bacteria would not *grow* near the *mould* |
| Why was the *impact* of Fleming's discovery *limited* at *first*? | Although Fleming could see the *potential* in his discovery, he did not *develop* the idea to make a medical *treatment*? |
| Who *developed Penicillin* into an effective medical *treatment*? | *Florey and Chain* developed Penicillin into an effective medical treatment - They were two *medical researchers* who worked together at *Oxford University* |
| *How* did Florey and Chain only have *limited success* when they *first* used penicillin as a treatment in *1940*? | They *grew* enough penicillin to treat a *policeman* who had *blood poisoning*. He showed promising *signs of recovery*, but then *died* because the supply of penicillin *ran out* |
| *Why* did Florey and Chain *run out* of penicillin? | It was *difficult* and very *expensive* to produce *large amounts* of penicillin |
| *Why* was penicillin *later* developed into a drug which was effective on a *huge scale*? | In *1941* the *USA* joined *World War II*, and the US *government* paid for methods to be developed to *mass produce* penicillin |
| *Why* was the *US government* prepared to spend the *money* to develop Penicillin during *wartime*? | Because they knew that *infected wounds* killed thousands of soldiers. If these soldiers could be successfully *treated* they would be able to *rejoin the fight*. This would give them an *advantage* over the enemy |
| *How successful* was the use of penicillin during *World War II*? | By the *end of World War II* it was possible to treat *all* allied casualties with *penicillin*, and this had a huge impact on *survival rates*, mainly because soldiers were no longer *dying* from *infected wounds* |
| How did antibiotics develop *after World War II*? | The success of *penicillin* encouraged scientists to look for other *moulds* which would treat other *infections*, and many were found, such as the one to treat *tuberculosis* |
| Why are *antibiotics* becoming *less effective* in the *present day*? | In the *21st century* scientists are desperately searching for *new antibiotics* because some *bacteria* are becoming *resistant* to the *antibiotics* that we already have. |
| Why has *lung cancer* become a major focus for *treatment* in the *20th century*? | In the *19th century* there had been very *few* cases of lung cancer, but the huge increase in *smoking* in the *early 20th century* led to *26,000* deaths in 1973 |
| *How* is lung cancer *treated*? | *Radiation (radiotherapy)* and *chemotherapy (drug therapy)* are used to *shrink tumours* to the point where they can hopefully be removed through *surgery* |
| What is the most *extreme* treatment for *lung cancer*? | In the *worst cases* it may be necessary to *transplant* a healthy lung to *replace* the diseased one |
| Which event in *1948* transformed medical *treatments* | In *1948* the *National Health Service (NHS)* was set up. This gave patients access to *free* medical care *of all kinds* |
| Who is a *GP*? | *GP* stands for *General Practitioner* - this is the official name for the *family doctor* |
| What was the *standard* of GPs like in *1950*? | In *1950* the standard of GPs was *very low* |
| Why did the start of the *NHS* have a *negative* impact on the quality of the work done by GPs *at first*? | *At first* the NHS made the performance of Doctors *worse* because they now had to see *far more patients* because their service was *free* |
| Why did the standard of Doctors *improve* after *1960*? | From the *1960s* the *government* took action to make sure that GPS were *better trained* and were required to keep *up to date* with new medical *developments* |
| How good was the standard of *hospital care* in England in *1948*? | In 1948 *hospital care* was *unreliable* - Many hospitals dated from the *19th century*, and there were far too few *outside London* |
| *Why* did the standard of hospitals *improve* after *1960*? | In the *1960s* the *government* started to *manage* as well as fund the NHS, and this led to hospitals being better *distributed* around the *country* |
| *How* did hospitals *improve* after *1960*? | Hospitals now have *well trained doctors* and *nurses*, with *consultants* who *specialise* in a single area of medicine |
| How has *modern technology* improved *hospitals*? | They have access to *high-tech equipment* such as *advanced x-rays*, and *imaging scanners*. *Computers* and even *robots* can be used to carry out more accurate *operations*. |
| What *problems* remain in the *treatment* of illness even *today*? | Although there have been impressive *advances* in the *treatment* of illness, many problems remain - *microbes* continued to *evolve*, and this has led to *drug-resistant* bacteria such as *MRSA* |
| How do *some* people respond to these *problems* with modern medicine? | Many people continue to use *alternative remedies*, such as *herbal medicines** and acupuncture*. Some of the herbal remedies are the same ones used in the *Medieval period*. |
| Which *individuals* have contributed to the development of medicine *since 1900* | *Ehrlich:* Magic *Bullets*
*Fleming:* Discovering *Penicillin*
*Florey and Chain:* Developing *Penicillin* into a *treatment* |
| How did *improved communications* help the development of medicine, especially since the *second half of the 20th century* | The development of *telephones*, affordable *air travel* and the *internet* have made it easy for scientists to *work together* even if they live on opposite sides of the *world* |
| How has the rapid development of *technology* helped medicine to progress *since 1900*? | The *electron microscope* was first developed in *1931*. These can now magnify up to *10 million times*. These were essential in helping scientists to see and understand *DNA* |
| How has *technology* made it easier for Doctors to understand the *internal anatomy* and workings of the *human body*? | *X-rays* developed and by the late 20th century *CT scanners* could be used to image the inside of the body in *detail* and diagnose diseases like cancer with *great accuracy* |
| How has *technology* helped to make the *medicines* that we take *more effective*? | *Technology* has made it possible to *mass produce pills*, and *capsules* now *dissolve* in the stomach so that drugs can be *absorbed* more easily |
| How did the *government* have a more *positive* influence on medicine and health *after 1900*? | By *1900* governments were already more willing to *take responsibility* for the health of the population, but from *1948* this role increased massively when the *NHS* was set up. This is paid for and managed by the *government* |
| How did *war* have a *positive impact* on the development of medicine *after 1900*? | *Penicillin* had been discovered in *1920*, but it was not until *World War II* that the American and British *governments* were prepared to pay the huge amounts of *money* that were needed to produce *enough* penicillin to *treat* large numbers of people |
