On 2 Sept Loose Rivets wrote:
I seem to recall that there is an AME operating from a suite in an hotel just north of LGW that is or was on a committee regarding the affects of radiation on aircrew. Anyone recall the name?
You can see how often I look at PPrune these days.
The 2 AMEs who run Airport Medical Services are Dr Edgington and Dr Goodwin. Im not sure which one of them sat on the committee but last time I was there for my medical I had a chat to Dr Goodwin about radiation.
I went to get my medical done on my way to work to operate a trip and due to the fact that I was in uniform Dr Goodwin asked me where I was going. I told him and as it was a bit of a grey day he remarked that at least I would get to see some sunshine. Yeah, I said. And also get another dose of cosmic radiation into the bargain. Ah well, replied the Dr in all seriousness. It might even be good for you, noone really knows what effect it may have.
Strangely enough a few months later I read an article in a newspaper that made the point that the graph of DNA damage done against radiation exposure is not a linear line but is actually a J shaped curve. Small doses seem to stimulate the immune system to destroy altered strands of DNA which had the potential to turn cancerous. (Not sure how small the dose needs to be though)