{"id":4912,"date":"2023-03-19T16:09:21","date_gmt":"2023-03-19T16:09:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=4912"},"modified":"2023-03-19T16:09:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-19T16:09:21","slug":"high-cancer-rates-among-military-pilots-and-ground-personnel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/magazine\/health-and-lifestyle\/high-cancer-rates-among-military-pilots-and-ground-personnel\/2023\/03\/19\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"High cancer rates among military pilots and ground personnel"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span>\u00a0A<\/span> Pentagon<\/span> study<\/span> found<\/span> high<\/span> rates<\/span> of<\/span> cancer<\/span> in<\/span> military<\/span> pilots,<\/span> as<\/span> well<\/span> as<\/span> the<\/span> ground<\/span> personnel<\/span> who<\/span> fuel,<\/span> service<\/span> and<\/span> take<\/span> off<\/span> these<\/span> planes.<\/span> For<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> time,<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> shown<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> ill.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>This<\/span> data<\/span> has<\/span> long<\/span> been<\/span> sought<\/span> by<\/span> retired<\/span> military<\/span> aviators<\/span> who<\/span> have<\/span> sounded<\/span> alarm<\/span> bells<\/span> about<\/span> the<\/span> number<\/span> of<\/span> known<\/span> air<\/span> and<\/span> ground<\/span> crew<\/span> members<\/span> with<\/span> cancer<\/span> for<\/span> years.<\/span> They<\/span> were<\/span> told<\/span> that<\/span> previous<\/span> military<\/span> studies<\/span> had<\/span> found<\/span> they<\/span> were<\/span> not<\/span> at<\/span> greater<\/span> risk<\/span> than<\/span> the<\/span> general<\/span> population<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> United<\/span> States.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Department<\/span> of<\/span> Defense<\/span> found<\/span> that<\/span> a<\/span> year-long<\/span> study<\/span> of<\/span> about<\/span> 900,000<\/span> soldiers<\/span> who<\/span> flew<\/span> or<\/span> served<\/span> in<\/span> military<\/span> aircraft<\/span> between<\/span> 1992<\/span> and<\/span> 2017<\/span> had<\/span> an<\/span> 87<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> melanoma<\/span> among<\/span> aircrew<\/span> than<\/span> among<\/span> 16-year-old<\/span> males.<\/span> %<\/span> higher<\/span> and<\/span> found<\/span> a<\/span> 39%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> thyroid<\/span> cancer.<\/span> Incidence<\/span> of<\/span> prostate<\/span> cancer<\/span> is<\/span> %<\/span> higher<\/span> and<\/span> women<\/span> have<\/span> a<\/span> 16%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> breast<\/span> cancer.<\/span> Overall,<\/span> flight<\/span> attendants<\/span> had<\/span> a<\/span> 24%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> all<\/span> types<\/span> of<\/span> cancer.<\/span> In<\/span> this<\/span> study,<\/span> ground<\/span> crew<\/span> had<\/span> a<\/span> 19%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> brain<\/span> and<\/span> nervous<\/span> system<\/span> cancer,<\/span> a<\/span> 15%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> thyroid<\/span> cancer,<\/span> a<\/span> 9%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> kidney<\/span> or<\/span> renal<\/span> cancer,<\/span> and<\/span> a<\/span> 9%<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> breast<\/span> cancer<\/span> in<\/span> women.<\/span> was<\/span> shown<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> 7%<\/span> higher.<\/span> cancer<\/span> is<\/span> detected.<\/span> The<\/span> overall<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> all<\/span> cancer<\/span> types<\/span> was<\/span> 3%<\/span> higher.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>There<\/span> was<\/span> also<\/span> a<\/span> happy<\/span> report.<\/span> Both<\/span> ground<\/span> and<\/span> air<\/span> crew<\/span> had<\/span> much<\/span> lower<\/span> rates<\/span> of<\/span> lung<\/span> cancer,<\/span> and<\/span> air<\/span> crew<\/span> also<\/span> had<\/span> lower<\/span> rates<\/span> of<\/span> bladder<\/span> and<\/span> colon<\/span> cancer.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Pentagon<\/span> says<\/span> the<\/span> new<\/span> investigation<\/span> is<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> largest<\/span> and<\/span> most<\/span> comprehensive<\/span> to<\/span> date.<\/span> Whereas<\/span> the<\/span> previous<\/span> study<\/span> only<\/span> included<\/span> Air<\/span> Force<\/span> pilots<\/span> and<\/span> found<\/span> a<\/span> higher<\/span> incidence<\/span> of<\/span> cancer,<\/span> this<\/span> study<\/span> included<\/span> all<\/span> service<\/span> and<\/span> both<\/span> air<\/span> and<\/span> ground<\/span> personnel.<\/span> Despite<\/span> a<\/span> broader<\/span> approach,<\/span> the<\/span> Pentagon<\/span> warned<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> actual<\/span> number<\/span> of<\/span> cancers<\/span> is<\/span> likely<\/span> higher<\/span> because<\/span> there<\/span> are<\/span> gaps<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> data<\/span> they<\/span> are<\/span> trying<\/span> to<\/span> fill.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>When<\/span> Navy<\/span> Captain<\/span> Jim<\/span> Seaman<\/span> returned<\/span> home<\/span> from<\/span> duty<\/span> on<\/span> an<\/span> aircraft<\/span> carrier,<\/span> his<\/span> gear<\/span> smelled<\/span> of<\/span> kerosene,<\/span> said<\/span> his<\/span> widow<\/span> Betty<\/span> Seaman.<\/span> The<\/span> A-6<\/span> Intruder<\/span> pilot<\/span> died<\/span> of<\/span> lung<\/span> cancer<\/span> in<\/span> 2018<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> age<\/span> of<\/span> 61.<\/span> Betty<\/span> Seaman<\/span> is<\/span> still<\/span> storing<\/span> her<\/span> gear,<\/span> and<\/span> she<\/span> smells<\/span> fuel.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>You<\/span> and<\/span> others<\/span> are<\/span> wondering<\/span> if<\/span> there<\/span> is<\/span> a<\/span> connection.<\/span> She<\/span> said<\/span> crew<\/span> members<\/span> are<\/span> talking<\/span> about<\/span> the<\/span> fact<\/span> that<\/span> even<\/span> the<\/span> ship’s<\/span> water<\/span> system<\/span> smells<\/span> of<\/span> fuel.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>She<\/span> and<\/span> others<\/span> have<\/span> mixed<\/span> feelings<\/span> about<\/span> being<\/span> able<\/span> to<\/span> finally<\/span> see<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> data<\/span> what<\/span> they<\/span> had<\/span> suspected<\/span> for<\/span> years<\/span> about<\/span> airplane<\/span> cancer.<\/span> And<\/span> you<\/span> can<\/span> do<\/span> a<\/span> lot<\/span> of<\/span> things,”<\/span> she<\/span> said.<\/span> The<\/span> study<\/span> found<\/span> that<\/span> crew<\/span> members<\/span> diagnosed<\/span> with<\/span> cancer<\/span> were<\/span> more<\/span> likely<\/span> to<\/span> survive<\/span> than<\/span> members<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> general<\/span> population.<\/span> This<\/span> is<\/span> because<\/span> they<\/span> are<\/span> more<\/span> likely<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> in<\/span> good<\/span> health<\/span> as<\/span> they<\/span> are<\/span> diagnosed<\/span> earlier<\/span> and<\/span> require<\/span> regular<\/span> check-ups.<\/span> their<\/span> military<\/span> fitness<\/span> requirements.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Department<\/span> of<\/span> Defense<\/span> has<\/span> acknowledged<\/span> that<\/span> there<\/span> are<\/span> gaps<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> study<\/span> that<\/span> may<\/span> lead<\/span> to<\/span> an<\/span> underestimation<\/span> of<\/span> cancer<\/span> cases.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> military<\/span> health<\/span> system<\/span> database<\/span> used<\/span> in<\/span> this<\/span> study<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> have<\/span> reliable<\/span> cancer<\/span> data<\/span> until<\/span> 1990,<\/span> so<\/span> pilots<\/span> who<\/span> flew<\/span> early-generation<\/span> jets<\/span> in<\/span> previous<\/span> decades<\/span> may<\/span> not<\/span> have<\/span> been<\/span> included.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>After<\/span> her<\/span> husband<\/span> fell<\/span> ill,<\/span> Betty<\/span> Seaman<\/span> asked<\/span> him<\/span> if<\/span> he<\/span> changed<\/span> his<\/span> mind,<\/span> knowing<\/span> his<\/span> work<\/span> could<\/span> be<\/span> linked<\/span> to<\/span> his<\/span> cancer.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cI<\/span> asked<\/span> Jim<\/span> directly,\u201d<\/span> she<\/span> said.<\/span> And<\/span> he<\/span> said<\/span> without<\/span> hesitation,<\/span> ‘I<\/span> would<\/span> have<\/span> done<\/span> it<\/span> anyway.’<\/span> \u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (AP) –\u00a0A Pentagon study found high rates of cancer in military pilots, as well as the ground personnel who fuel, service and take off these planes. For the first time, it was shown to be ill. This data has long been sought by retired military aviators who have sounded alarm bells about the number […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[562],"tags":[2175,2176,2177,2178,2179,2180,2181,2182,2183,136,2184,2169,2185,2170,2186,2171,2172,2173,2174],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/pilt.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4912"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4912"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4912\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4914,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4912\/revisions\/4914"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}