AQA GCSE Biology 8461: Health issues, lifestyle and cancer – Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions practise 4.2.2.5 Health issues, 4.2.2.6 The effect of lifestyle on some non-communicable diseases and 4.2.2.7 Cancer from the AQA GCSE Biology (8461) specification, for teaching from September 2016 and exams from 2018. The three sections are assessed on Paper 1 at Foundation and Higher Tier, and none of the content is (HT only), so every question suits both tiers. Questions 3, 4, 6 and 7 practise the data skills the specification names (MS 2c, 2d, 2g, 4a). The answers say what earns each mark.

Related: Health, lifestyle and cancer study guide, health and lifestyle revision notes and cancer revision notes. Questions on coronary heart disease are in the heart and blood vessels practice questions.

How should you use these questions?

Answer each question in full before reading the answer, keeping to the mark allocation in bold. In data questions, always quote figures and give units. The questions are ordered from recall to evaluation, so work through them in order the first time.

Questions

1. Define the term health. [1]

2. Complete each sentence.

(a) A disease that is caused by a pathogen and can be spread between people is called a ______ disease. [1] (b) Give three factors, other than disease, that the specification says can have a profound effect on physical and mental health. [3]

3. The table shows new cases of a non-communicable disease in two regions in one year.

Region	Population	New cases
North	800 000	1 440
South	250 000	575

(a) Calculate the rate of new cases per 100 000 people in each region. [2] (b) A newspaper says the disease is “a bigger problem in the North”. Use your answers to evaluate this claim. [2]

4. A student wants to show the number of people with asthma in five age groups: 0 to under 10, 10 to under 20, 20 to under 40, 40 to under 60 and 60 to under 80.

(a) Name the type of chart the student should draw, and give a reason. [2] (b) 210 people in the 20 to under 40 group have asthma. Calculate the frequency density for this bar. [1]

5. Describe two ways in which different types of disease may interact. Give an example for each. [4]

6. Scientists want to find out whether a substance in drinking water is a risk factor for a disease.

(a) What is meant by a risk factor? [1] (b) Describe three features the sample of people in the study should have, and explain why. [3]

7. A scatter diagram plots the percentage of adults who are obese in 12 countries against the percentage of adults with Type 2 diabetes. The points rise from left to right.

(a) Name the type of correlation shown. [1] (b) A student concludes: “Obesity causes Type 2 diabetes.” Explain why the scatter diagram alone does not prove this. [2]

8. In a study of pregnant women, the babies of 1 000 smokers had a mean birth mass of 3.05 kg. The babies of 1 000 non-smokers had a mean birth mass of 3.29 kg.

(a) Calculate the difference in mean birth mass. Give your answer in grams. [1] (b) Explain how smoking during pregnancy could lead to this difference. [2] (c) Name one other substance the specification lists as harmful to unborn babies. [1]

9. Give the effect of long-term heavy alcohol drinking on two organs named in the specification. [2]

10. Discuss the human and financial costs of non-communicable diseases to an individual and to a nation. [4]

11. Explain how diet, smoking and exercise affect the risk of cardiovascular disease. [3]

12. Compare benign and malignant tumours. [4]

13. Give one lifestyle risk factor and one other kind of risk factor for cancer. [2]

14. Explain why one person who has smoked for 40 years may never develop lung cancer, while a non-smoker does. [2]

Answers

1. The state of physical and mental well-being [1]. (Both physical and mental are needed.)

2. (a) Communicable (or infectious) [1]. (b) Diet [1]; stress [1]; life situations [1].

3. (a) North: 1 440 / 800 000 x 100 000 = 180 per 100 000 [1]. South: 575 / 250 000 x 100 000 = 230 per 100 000 [1]. (b) The North has more cases in total (1 440 against 575) [1], but the South has the higher rate, 230 against 180 per 100 000, so a person in the South is more likely to develop the disease; the claim is only true for total numbers [1].

4. (a) A histogram [1], because age is continuous data grouped into classes (and the classes have unequal widths) [1]. (b) Class width = 40 - 20 = 20 years; frequency density = 210 / 20 = 10.5 people per year [1].

5. Any two interactions, each with an example [2 + 2]:

• Defects in the immune system make infectious disease more likely [1]; for example HIV damages white blood cells, so other infections take hold [1].
• Viruses living in cells can trigger cancers [1]; for example HPV and cervical cancer [1].
• Immune reactions first caused by a pathogen can trigger allergies [1]; for example skin rashes or asthma [1].
• Severe physical ill health can lead to mental illness [1]; for example depression [1].

6. (a) Something linked to an increased rate of a disease [1]. (b) Any three, each with a reason [1 each]:

• Large, so chance results or unusual individuals have less effect.
• Representative of the population (ages, sexes, backgrounds), so the results apply to the whole population.
• Chosen at random, so the researchers do not bias the sample.
• (Also credit: other factors, such as smoking, recorded or controlled, so the effect of the substance can be seen.)

7. (a) Positive correlation [1]. (b) A correlation only shows the two variables are linked [1]; another factor (such as diet or exercise) could explain both, or a causal mechanism must be shown before claiming cause [1].

8. (a) 3.29 - 3.05 = 0.24 kg = 240 g [1]. (b) Smoke contains carbon monoxide, which reduces the amount of oxygen the mother’s blood carries [1], so less oxygen reaches the baby and it grows less, giving a lower birth mass [1]. (c) Alcohol [1].

9. Liver: damage to liver cells (for example cirrhosis) [1]. Brain: reduced brain function, such as slower reactions, or damage to brain tissue [1].

10. Award one mark per relevant cost, up to 4, with at least one human and one financial cost:

• Individual, human: pain, lower quality of life or shorter life [1].
• Individual, financial: lost earnings if unable to work, or care costs [1].
• Nation, human: fewer healthy people, many early deaths [1].
• Nation, financial: cost of treatment to the health service (the NHS in the UK) or lost productivity [1].

11. A diet high in saturated fat raises blood cholesterol, leading to fatty deposits in arteries [1]. Smoking damages artery walls and increases the risk [1]. Regular exercise reduces the risk (lack of exercise increases it) [1].

12. Both are growths of abnormal cells caused by uncontrolled cell division [1]. Benign tumours are contained in one area, usually within a membrane, and do not invade other parts of the body [1]. Malignant tumours are cancers that invade neighbouring tissues [1] and spread in the blood to other parts of the body, where they form secondary tumours [1].

13. Lifestyle: for example smoking, or exposure to carcinogens such as ionising radiation [1]. Other: a genetic (inherited) risk factor [1]. (Also credit: viruses such as HPV.)

14. A risk factor only increases the chance of a disease; it does not guarantee it [1]. Many diseases are caused by the interaction of several factors, such as genetic risk factors or other lifestyle factors, so the outcome differs between people [1].

Where marks are usually lost

• Leaving out mental in the definition of health.
• Comparing total cases instead of rates between populations of different sizes.
• Forgetting to convert kilograms to grams when the question asks for grams.
• Claiming a scatter diagram proves cause.
• Writing that malignant cells “spread” without saying they travel in the blood and form secondary tumours.
• Giving only human costs (or only financial costs) when the question asks for both.

Frequently asked questions

How many marks are these topics worth on Paper 1? AQA does not fix a number for each section. Questions on health, lifestyle and cancer often combine recall with data analysis, so practise both.

Do I need to learn named cancers? The specification only asks for lifestyle and genetic risk factors and the link between some viruses and cancer. Lung cancer and smoking, and HPV and cervical cancer, are the most useful examples.

What does “discuss” mean in a cost question? Give a range of points and link each to a level (individual, community, nation or global), covering human and financial costs.

Official syllabus

AQA GCSE Biology (8461) specification, Version 1.0, for teaching from September 2016 and exams from 2018 onwards, Topic 4.2 Organisation: 4.2.2.5 Health issues, 4.2.2.6 The effect of lifestyle on some non-communicable diseases and 4.2.2.7 Cancer.