My second SQ/CC--25 years at AAL flying everything up to the DC-10, 10 years of B-47 and B-58. Brain cancer got him at 73, retired on his 60th, btw.

GF

7234:

Very sorry to hear about your diagnosis. I hope you can prove them wrong.

I was stationed in Germany for 6 years. Of that group of about 200 (75 aircrew + spouses, and normal rotations), I believe 3-4 have developed brain cancer, which is many orders of magnitude higher than what the CDC predicts.

It included a spouse, so it couldn't have all been flying-related.

Environment? Maybe, but the Germans are real Nazis (pun intended) about water purity and pollution. On the other hand, the Eifel region where I was has a limestone base, which typically includes radon and other radioactive elements...and that is where the drinking water came from.

Fighter aviation meant shorter hops/exposure, but often getting cooked from relatively close ranges by the radar of your peace-time dogfight opponent.

On the other hand, we rarely flew above 24,000, so the background radiation was lower.

I have wondered how significant cockpit radiation is in airliners, given the aluminum skin over our heads, and very thick glass (with metal conducting additives, for window heat), in front. Granted, the side windows would let more in.

Most of us can relate anecdotal stories of guys who did everything right with diet, exercise, and rest, and yet developed a traumatic health condition.

And there are the guys who drank, smoked, ate lots of fat and salt, and somehow lived to be nearly 100.

Sometimes we know why things happen, and other times, we don't. I suspect brain cancer falls into the latter.

I wish you all the best in your treatment.

Not significant shielding against high-energy cosmic/solar radiation (but stops essentially all UVB).

The best shielding for that is lowest 30,000 feet of moisture laden air which you're flying over...

Actually I would guess that our windows (which have layers of polycarbonate) provide better shielding than the aluminum vs. the high-energy stuff, but I'd have to do the math to be sure.

Something scientific and documented
 

It indicates high incidence among pilots

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12862322

No, not to Brain Cancer...the subject of this thread, and specifically, whether radiation in-flight was causal:

The skin cancer rate was 2.3% more than normal.

I'm good for two melanoma surgeries a year, sometimes more.

Honestly at this point I am most concerned about fume events over radiation. Although both can be traumatic, with fume events it has the potential to be more damaging in one bad day with a fume leak vs a small amount of radiation over time. It not only exacerbates the development of cancer but other chronic respiratory issues not to mention other neurological side effects. What's worse most in the US are ignorant to the serious effect it has on our health and how often it's occurring. The other difference is there's actually a solution to at least slow its effects with better air filters.

For more info:

www.FumeEvents.com - Home

I suspect that the skin cancer rate among pilots is due more to time off and a tendency towards active outdoor lifestyles, relative to our 9-to-5 peers.

Glass cockpit windows block essentially all UVB, which is the spectrum known to cause skin cancer.

But plastic windows used in light airplanes don't block anything other than bugs, so lather on the sunblock for GA ops.

Yes, I'm far more concerned with breathing jet-a fumes than radiation exposure on a daily basis, to say nothing of toxic engine bleed event.

Anti-oxidants, and lots of them....

Concur 100%.

A lot of them golf (I don't). :p