Search

Background: Commercial airline pilots are exposed to cosmic radiation and other potentially carcinogenic elements during work and leisure activities., Hypothesis: Work-related factors affect cancer pattern of the pilots., Methods: A cohort of 10,051 male and 160 female airline pilots from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden was followed for cancer incidence through the national cancer registries. There were 177,000 person-years at follow-up, 51,000 of them accumulated after 20 yr since the time of first employment. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were defined as ratios of observed over expected numbers of cases based on national cancer incidence rates. Dose-response analyses were done with Poisson regression method., Results: Among male pilots, there were 466 cases of cancer diagnosed vs. 456 expected. The only significantly increased SIRs concerned skin cancer: melanoma 2.3 (95% CI 1.7-3.0), squamous cell cancer 2.1 (1.7-2.8), and basal cell carcinoma 2.5 (1.9-3.2). The relative risk of skin cancers increased with the time since first employment, the number of flight hours, and the estimated radiation dose. There was an increase in the relative risk of prostate cancer with increasing number of flight hours in long-distance aircraft (p trend 0.01). No increased incidence was found for acute myeloid leukemia or brain cancer which were of interest a priori based on earlier studies., Conclusions: This large study, based on reliable cancer incidence data, showed an increased incidence of skin cancer. It did not indicate a marked increase in cancer risk attributable to cosmic radiation although some influence of cosmic radiation on skin cancer cannot be entirely excluded.

Objective: To assess the incidence of cancer among male airline pilots in the Nordic countries, with special reference to risk related to cosmic radiation., Design: Retrospective cohort study, with follow up of cancer incidence through the national cancer registries., Setting: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden., Participants: 10 032 male airline pilots, with an average follow up of 17 years., Main Outcome Measures: Standardised incidence ratios, with expected numbers based on national cancer incidence rates; dose-response analysis using Poisson regression., Results: 466 cases of cancer were diagnosed compared with 456 expected. The only significantly increased standardised incidence ratios were for skin cancer: melanoma 2.3 (95% confidence interval 1.7 to 3.0), non-melanoma 2.1 (1.7 to 2.8), basal cell carcinoma 2.5 (1.9 to 3.2). The relative risk of skin cancers increased with the estimated radiation dose. The relative risk of prostate cancer increased with increasing number of flight hours in long distance aircraft., Conclusions: This study does not indicate a marked increase in cancer risk attributable to cosmic radiation, although some influence of cosmic radiation on skin cancer cannot be entirely excluded. The suggestion of an association between number of long distance flights (possibly related to circadian hormonal disturbances) and prostate cancer needs to be confirmed.

Background: Aircraft pilots are exposed to several agents that may be associated with an increased risk of cancer. Previous studies regarding cancer incidence and mortality in aircraft pilots have not shown a consistent pattern. The aim of this study was to describe the cancer incidence in male Swedish airline and military pilots considering flight hours and aircraft type., Hypothesis: Aircraft pilots have an increased risk of certain types of cancer., Methods: Male aircraft pilots with the Swedish Scandinavian Airline System (SAS) (n = 1,490) and military pilots and navigators in the Swedish Air Force (n = 2,808) employed during 1957-1994 were studied regarding cancer incidence during 1961-1996 using the Swedish National Cancer Register. The cancer incidence was compared with that of the general male Swedish population., Results: The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) for cancer overall was 1.00 (95% CI 0.80-1.22) for airline pilots, 0.97 (95% CI 0.83-1.10) for military pilots and 0.98 (95% CI 0.87-1.09) for all pilots. Airline pilots had an increased incidence of malignant melanoma of the skin (SIR 2.54) and military pilots of other skin cancer (SIR 2.10). For airline pilots with > 10,000 block hours or high-altitude long-distance duty results were similar concerning cancer overall and skin cancers., Conclusions: Swedish pilots had an overall cancer incidence similar to the male general population. An increased incidence of malignant melanoma in airline pilots and of other skin cancer in military pilots could be associated with exposure to UV radiation either at work or outside work.