Originally published at: Study Finds Elevated Cancer Risk for Pilots, Flight Attendants
A new study finds pilots and flight attendants have higher rates of fatal radiation-related cancers than workers in other occupations, including those who handle radioactive materials.
You should look into the rates of glioblastoma among flight crews. The incidence rate seems well above the statistical average for the general population.
Maybe flight crews should wear radiation exposure badges to document level of exposure to radiation. Healthcare workers in the radiology departments have been wearing these badges for years.
In the RCAF we wore rad dose tags with our dog tags… I doubt they were ever read though lol. I sat 2ft from a 500kw magnetron (aka radar) for most of my Air Force career … I now have all sorts of lumps and bumps on my back which I monitor.
In the airlines (AC) our time/exposure was tracked and reported to us. I believe our FAs were further restricted if they were pregnant (after 3 months I think).
This is not news but in my career I saw flying go from the low 300s (eg FL 330) to consistently high 300s & low 400s. Business jets are up in the high 400s. The atmosphere that “protects” us thins at an accelerated rate as you climb.
Nothing new. The cancer risk has been known for decades. BA and Air France introduced monitor programmes for Concorde crews due to the high levels of cosmic radiation at their high cruising altitude.
I agree. Nothing new. These studies have been going on for years. Plus the number of fair skinned aviation crew members with skin cancers is higher than in most jobs. Cataracts are another common issue in aviators.
Cargo pilots wear them. I did. Never registered anything.
I am unable to find the stats on this but since only 2 out of 100,000 people die from glioblastomas if one extra flight attendant died therefrom, it would show as a 50% greater chance but still quite rare. I’ve only known one person who died from glioblastoma and she was a teacher. I think a much greater risk is skin cancer and I’ve had a tumor removed from my neck and most of us senior guys get regular skin checks and “burn offs”.
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