I want nothing more than to fly fighters for either air force or navy but I’ve come to realize that pilots are at a greater risk for cancer because of the radiation and whatnot. It’s not so much the cancers such as prostate which can be screened that scare me as much as the brain tumors which are only discovered when it’s too late. if anyone has any input on this that would be great.
-
Please take a moment and update your account profile. If you have an updated account profile with basic information on why you are on Air Warriors it will help other people respond to your posts. How do you update your profile you ask?
Go here:
Edit Account Details and Profile
Cancer rates for pilots?
- Thread starter nsnyder11
- Start date
If this is why you would decide not to fly, you probably shouldn’t join the military. Turns out fighting wars is bad for your health.
Also, our give a shit about things like cancer are minimal compared to the privilege to fly.
Also, our give a shit about things like cancer are minimal compared to the privilege to fly.
Ironically my understanding is the nuclear communities have very robust monitoring programs to limit personnel radiation dosages, to the point of allegedly coming in under the risks presented by normal background radiation.
There seems to be a bit of noise lately about this subject but not a lot of hard evidence thus far to back up the claims. The USAF recently decided to study the issue so hopefully we will get some answers, but I am not sure it will provide them as there are likely many variables in addition to flying fighters that may have an impact on risk like many flying for the airlines post-military.
Definition of an optimist: someone who flies aircraft to boats at night and worries about cancer.
There's nothing conclusive about this and I find it odd that you focused on to this risk when it there are other more real ones faced by pilots in the conduct of their unique duties. For instance, a pilot is far more likely to die in an a/c mishap then an accountant since a pilot will be exposed to the risks of flight far more often than the accountant.
Bottom line: flying is a high risk profession. if you don't like the idea of risk, be it cancer, mishap, or combat, then you should look elsewhere for employment. have you considered accounting?
There's nothing conclusive about this and I find it odd that you focused on to this risk when it there are other more real ones faced by pilots in the conduct of their unique duties. For instance, a pilot is far more likely to die in an a/c mishap then an accountant since a pilot will be exposed to the risks of flight far more often than the accountant.
Bottom line: flying is a high risk profession. if you don't like the idea of risk, be it cancer, mishap, or combat, then you should look elsewhere for employment. have you considered accounting?
FormerRecruitingGuru
Making Recruiting Great Again
OP sounds like a great fit for Brett’s squadron/staff/team/whatever he’s doing these days.
Do you want to fly fighters, or not?
This thread's existence highlights everything that's wrong with risk assessment in our society.
My uncle was a real estate broker, and he died of brain cancer. True story. You could get cancer from radon gas in your basement, breathing secondhand smoke at a party, or (at least according to the state of CA) buying virtually any retail product. Conversely, you could be a pilot and live well into your 90s. Chuck Yeager flew in two wars, did copious amounts of high altitude test flying, and just turned 97 a couple of months ago.
Not flying doesn't guarantee you a healthier life. I'd focus on what YOU WANT out of life, rather than what people tell you is safe, or that you SHOULD WANT based on the mess deck rumor of the week. The media's focused on trying to get you to click on a story. Pay attention to people who have been there and done that. They'll give you a sense of whether or not it's for you.
This thread's existence highlights everything that's wrong with risk assessment in our society.
My uncle was a real estate broker, and he died of brain cancer. True story. You could get cancer from radon gas in your basement, breathing secondhand smoke at a party, or (at least according to the state of CA) buying virtually any retail product. Conversely, you could be a pilot and live well into your 90s. Chuck Yeager flew in two wars, did copious amounts of high altitude test flying, and just turned 97 a couple of months ago.
Not flying doesn't guarantee you a healthier life. I'd focus on what YOU WANT out of life, rather than what people tell you is safe, or that you SHOULD WANT based on the mess deck rumor of the week. The media's focused on trying to get you to click on a story. Pay attention to people who have been there and done that. They'll give you a sense of whether or not it's for you.
exNavyOffRec
Well-Known Member
Correct, I rec'd more exposure from x-rays in 1 day during my VA claim physical than I rec'd during my entire career as a nuke, and there were a few times I had to have my exposure limit increased due to work I was supervising in the Reactor Compartment.
Not even being sarcastic here, this was essentially my mindset, when debating whether I should head down to the 7/11 (ship's store) on cruise and buy yet another can of dip when I was planning to quit. I'll just say that I didn't quit for good until my last career night trap was behind me, though I can't say if that actually had anything to do with my eventual success in quitting.
