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Re: Airline personnel



On 23 Oct 2003 at 12:04, William Prestwich wrote:



> Dear Radsafers,

>  I was telling a colleague about the recent study posted to the

> list showing increased cancer incidence among airline personnel.

> Unfortunately I erased the message after I read it. I have not yet

> faced up to using the archive system. Would it be possible for someone

> to forward it to me? Cheers, Bill Prestwich prestwic@mcmaster.ca



Research shows higher cancer risk for flight crews



LONDON (Reuters) - New research released Wednesday showed airline 

flight crews had a higher than normal rate of skin and breast cancer.



Researchers at the University of Iceland in Reykjavik found that 

flight attendants who had worked for five or more years were more 

likely to develop breast cancer.



And in a separate study, scientists at the Stockholm Center for 

Public Health in Sweden uncovered an increase in malignant melanoma, 

the deadliest form of skin cancer, among both male and female cabin 

crew.



Previous studies have also suggested that skin cancer and possibly 

acute myeloid leukemia were more common in male pilots and that 

female flight attendants had a raised risk of breast cancer.



"There is mounting evidence that cabin crew appear to have an 

increased risk of malignant melanoma and breast cancer," Dr Elizabeth 

Whelan of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the 

United States said in a commentary on the research studies published 

in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine.



Whelan said higher doses of cosmic ionizing radiation were found at 

higher altitudes. Doses that flight crews are exposed to have been 

increasing over time as longer flights at higher altitudes have 

become more common.



But she said more research was needed to determine whether the 

increased cancer risk is due to work or other lifestyle factors. 

Further studies being done in the European Union and the United 

States might provide more answers, Whelan added.



------------------------------------

Sandy Perle

Vice President, Technical Operations

Global Dosimetry Solutions, Inc.

3300 Hyland Avenue

Costa Mesa, CA 92626



Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100  Extension 2306

Fax:(714) 668-3149



E-Mail: sperle@globaldosimetry.com

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Personal Website: http://sandy-travels.com/

Global Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com/



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