Piloting a combat aircraft is undoubtedly a “risky profession”. But if all pilots accept having to put their lives on the line during combat missions, as well as the inevitable risk of accidents, very few know that this profession exposes them to an increased risk of developing certain cancers, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer or melanoma. This is what emerges from a study carried out in the United States on all pilot and navigator personnel having completed more than 100 hours of flight on a weapon aircraft between 1970 and 2004 by the 711th Human Performance Squadron of the Air Force Research Laboratory, and whose conclusions are undoubtedly problematic.
Indeed, over this period, the 34,679 flight crew meeting the above criteria had a 29% additional chance of developing testicular cancer, 24% of developing melanoma and 23% additional chance, or rather bad luck, of developed prostate cancer than the 411,998 US Air Force officers who served during this same period, and who did not belong to this category. The risks are even higher than the population average for these 3 types of Cancer, even though flight crews generally have a much better lifestyle than the average American. This study now calls for a causal study, to determine the reasons for this over-exposure to certain types of cancer (and not to others such as brain cancer for example), as can be the case for example over-exposure to ultraviolet radiation at high altitude, or to electromagnetic radiation produced by on-board systems, such as radar, radios or jamming systems.
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