JOEM: Breast Cancer Among Female Flight Attendants (October 2022)-JOEM: Breast Cancer Among Female Flight Attendants (October 2022)

JOEM: Breast Cancer Among Female Flight Attendants (October 2022)

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A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the role of occupational exposures in breast cancer risk among female flight attendants (FFAs). The review included nine studies that reported on the incidence of breast cancer among FFAs and assessed the exposures of cosmic radiation and circadian rhythm disruption. The meta-analysis included four of these studies and found a pooled standardized incidence ratio for breast cancer incidence among FFAs of 1.43 (95% confidence interval, 1.32 to 1.54), indicating an elevated risk of breast cancer among FFAs compared to the general population. However, neither exposure to cosmic radiation nor circadian rhythm disruption was found to explain this elevated risk. The available evidence is limited and there is a need for further studies reporting individual information on occupational exposures. The review also highlighted the importance of considering other established risk factors for breast cancer, such as reproductive factors, when examining the risk among FFAs. The findings suggest that occupational exposures alone may not fully account for the increased risk of breast cancer among FFAs, and that other factors should be taken into consideration. Future research should aim to obtain individual data on exposures and adjust for multiple confounders to better understand the relationship between occupational exposures and breast cancer risk in this population.

Keywords

systematic review

meta-analysis

occupational exposures

breast cancer risk

female flight attendants

cosmic radiation

circadian rhythm disruption

incidence of breast cancer

pooled standardized incidence ratio

elevated risk