USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

Airmen from the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine, the 5th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron, and the 742nd Missile Squadron pose for a photo at a missile alert facility (MAF), near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023. The team assessed indoor air quality at each facility to include temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide levels. as part of the ongoing “Missile Community Cancer Study,” air, water and soil quality will be tested at all the missile alert facilities within Air Force Global Strike Command’s three operational intercontinental ballistic missile wings for potential occupational hazards. USAFSAM is part of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s 711th Human Performance Wing.

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USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Oscar Ruiz-Camacho, a 5th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron bioenvironmental engineering technician, swabs to collect data for a swipe sample at a missile alert facility (MAF), near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023. Ruiz-Camacho collected a swipe sample to test for presence of polychlorinated biphenyls. Airmen from the 5th OMRS conducted these tests as part of the ongoing “Missile Community Cancer Study,” air, water and soil quality will be tested at all the missile alert facilities within Air Force Global Strike Command’s three operational intercontinental ballistic missile wings for potential occupational hazards. USAFSAM is part of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s 711th Human Performance Wing.

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USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

Tech Sgt. Bridgette Brzezinski, U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine bioenvironmental engineer, collects data from a swipe sample at a missile alert facility (MAF), near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023. Teams recorded indoor air quality data and collected water, surface and soil samples to test for potential occupational exposure hazards at each of Minot’s MAFs. They also collected water and soil samples and tested for presence of radon, polychlorinated biphenyls, organic phosphates and other potential occupational exposure hazards. USAFSAM is part of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s 711th Human Performance Wing.

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USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine bioenvironmental engineers collect a swipe sample at a missile alert facility (MAF), near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023. USAFSAM teams visited Minot’s MAFs as part of the ongoing “Missile Community Cancer Study” at all three intercontinental ballistic missile wings in Air Force Global Strike Command.

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USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Oscar Ruiz-Camacho, 5th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron, Bioenvironmental Engineering Technician, digs a hole outside of a missile alert facility (MAF), near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023. Ruiz-Camacho collected a soil sample at a MAF to test for organic phosphates from pesticides. Airmen from the 5th OMRS and the United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine visited Minot’s MAFs as part of the ongoing “Missile Community Cancer Study” at all three intercontinental ballistic missile wings in Air Force Global Strike Command. The team assessed indoor air quality at each facility to include temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide levels. They also collected water and soil samples and tested for presence of radon, polychlorinated biphenyls, organic phosphates and other potential occupational exposure hazards. USAFSAM is part of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s 711th Human Performance Wing.

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USAFSAM Visits MAFB to Continue Cancer Study

Published July 28, 2023
By Airman 1st Class Trust Tate
5th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --

Members of the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine team visited a missile alert facility near Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, July 25, 2023, as part of the ongoing "Missile Community Cancer Study." The MCCS will look at all ICBM Wings, all AFSCs in the ICBM field, and the environment and environmental factors at all ICBM installations.

As the study progresses, updates and resources will continue to be posted online at: https://www.airforcemedicine.af.mil/Resources/Missile-Community-Cancer-Study/

If any Airman – past or present, Guardian, or family member has a question or concern, they are encouraged to speak to their medical provider or they can submit their question through the AFGSC Official Website at: https://www.afgsc.af.mil/Contact-Us/ or via the Office of the Air Force Surgeon General at: https://www.airforcemedicine.af.mil/Contact-Us/