The Invisible Hazard Above: Why Pilots and Flight Attendants Face the Highest Radiation-Related Cancer Deaths
- Published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine, a new study evaluated 12 million death certificates, finding flight attendants face roughly 50% higher odds of radiation-related cancer death, while pilots face approximately 36% higher odds.
- Human exposure to cosmic radiation increases significantly at high altitudes, where flight crews work regularly; only a fraction of this radiation reaches Earth's surface from outer space.
- Across over 500 occupations, flight attendants and pilots record the highest proportion of radiation-related cancer mortality, with roughly 6.9% of flight attendant deaths and 6.7% of pilot deaths linked to radiation versus 5% in the general working population.
- Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, stated the study confirms urgent need to address workplace radiation hazards, while the Federal Aviation Administration does not require regular monitoring or establish dose limits.
- Routine annual skin examinations may be recommended for aviation workers, according to commentary writers Catherine Olsen and Ken Karipidis, who suggest physicians maintain a "heightened index of suspicion" for potential cancers when assessing these patients.
15 Articles
15 Articles
A study conducted in the US revealed that flight attendants and pilots have a higher risk of dying from radiation-related cancers than other occupational groups.
Flight attendants, pilots have highest risk of dying from radiation-linked cancers, study finds
Flight attendants, pilots have highest risk of dying from radiation-linked cancers, study finds Click this link for the original source of this article. Author: New York Post This content is courtesy of, and owned and copyrighted by, https://www.offthepress.com and its author. This content is made available by use of the public RSS feed offered by...
Flight attendants and pilots are most at risk of dying from radiation-related cancers – a risk even greater than that of people working with radioactive materials, according to a new study quoted by The...
The Invisible Hazard Above: Why Pilots and Flight Attendants Face the Highest Radiation-Related Cancer Deaths
Pilots bank their aircraft through thin air at 35,000 feet. Flight attendants serve drinks while hurtling at 500 miles per hour. Few passengers give a second thought to the environment outside the fuselage. Yet new evidence shows that environment bathes crews in constant cosmic radiation. And the toll shows up in death records. A study published just yesterday in JAMA Internal Medicine analyzed more than 12.7 million U.S. death certificates from…
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