What jobs are most associated with deaths from radiation-related cancer? Surprisingly, the answer is cabin crew and pilots—ahead of nuclear technologists, whose work involves handling radioactive materials used in medical imaging and treatment.
That's the finding of a new study that analyzed more than 12.7 million death records from 2020–2024, covering more than 500 occupations. The researchers ranked the occupations by the proportion of deaths in which a radiation-related cancer was listed as a cause.
For the analysis, the researchers concentrated on cancers that previous research had suggested were associated with radiation, including breast cancer, leukemia, brain tumors, prostate cancer and melanoma. About 6.9% of deaths among cabin crew and 6.7% among pilots were from these cancers.
The pattern was particularly interesting because it was not seen for cancers that were not considered radiation-related, nor among aircraft mechanics and engineers who spend their careers around airplanes but remain on the ground.
The obvious question is why working on an aircraft should expose anyone to much radiation at all. The answer has nothing to do with the aircraft itself. It comes from above it.
