VDH Research Spotlight
Study on the Incidence of Cancer Diagnosis and Mortality among Military Aviators and Aviation Support Personnel
The “Study on the Incidence of Cancer Diagnosis and Mortality among Military Aviators and Aviation Support Personnel” was conducted by the Department of Defense (DOD) in response to section 750 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 (Public Law 116–283).
The objective was to determine whether the incidence of cancer diagnosis and mortality among military fixed wing aviators (aircrew) and aviation support personnel (ground crew) was higher compared to the US general population after adjusting for age, sex, and race. The study period was 1992 to 2017 and included data from the Defense Medical Surveillance System, DOD cancer registry, Veterans Affairs Central Cancer Registry, Virtual Pooled Registry Cancer Linkage System state cancer registries, and National Death Index.
There were over 130,000 aircrew and 650,000 ground crew included in the study. Compared to the U.S. population, aircrew showed higher rates of melanoma (75%), thyroid cancer (31%), and prostate cancer (20%), and ground crew showed 12% higher rate of kidney cancer. Mortality rates for all cancers were lower or similar to the U.S. population. The second phase of this study is currently underway to better understand specific environmental and occupational risk factors in these populations.
Community Conversations to Understand the Factors Driving Substance Use
To better understand drivers of increasing substance use and overdose in the Richmond area, Richmond and Henrico Health Districts (RHHD) conducted a series of ‘community conversations’ with neighborhood residents from May – December 2023.
Conversations identified three contributing themes:
- Diverse substance use perspectives and experiences.
- Influence of antecedent life events or trauma and/or substance use as a coping mechanism.
- Normalized use and access in the community in the absence of open community-level discussions around substance use and its drivers.
Conversations also identified resource needs in three categories:
- Knowledge and information-sharing around substance use, overdose prevention, mental health, and managing stressors and trauma
- Supports to improve family and community wellbeing and cohesion
- Consistent and coordinated wraparound assistance.
Findings are informing priorities and initiatives going forward.
This study has been accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
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