Harvard Study Finds Higher Cancer Mortality Risk Among Pilots, Flight Attendants

A new Harvard study published Aug. 17 in JAMA Internal Medicine found higher proportions of deaths linked to radiation-related cancers among airline pilots and flight attendants compared with other occupations. Using data from the National Vital Statistics System, researchers analyzed nearly 13 million U.S. death certificates covering 2020 to 2024, including about 14,000 deaths involving pilots and about 7,000 involving flight attendants. The study focused on cancers that can be associated with radiation exposure and excluded lung cancer to avoid confounding from smoking. Pilots and attendants showed statistically significant increases in mortality for breast cancer, central nervous system cancers, prostate cancer and melanoma, with pilots also showing a higher mortality rate for leukemia. Radiation-related cancers accounted for 6.9% of deaths among flight attendants and 6.7% among pilots.