Q1. The assessment of a 60-year-old patient has taken longer than anticipated. In testing his pain perception the nurse decides to complete the test as quickly as possible. While the nurse applies the sharp point of the pin on his arm several times, he is only able to identify these as one “very sharp prick.” What would be the most correct explanation for this?

Q2. Recent studies have revealed that xeroderma pigmentosum (an error in the nucleotide excision repair process) can result from mutations in one of seven genes. What could you infer from this finding?