French flight attendant's breast cancer is recognised as occupational disease
The ruling cites night work, ionising radiation and passive smoking, and it could open the door to similar claims from flight crew.
- In early July, a court in Bayonne, France, recognized the occupational origin of Lainault's cancer, marking the first such ruling for an air hostess and a significant legal development as breast cancer is not on France's official list of occupational diseases.
- Lainault accumulated more than 12,600 flight hours, including over 6,500 at night, during her Air France career between 1989 and 2019. The court identified night work, radiation exposure, and passive smoking as contributing factors.
- After fighting for two and a half years with support from CFDT activists, Lainault secured the decision. The court noted the absence of any genetic or lifestyle-related factors that could explain her diagnosis.
- Lainault's lawyer, Elisabeth Leroux, said the decision sets a legal precedent. Air France said it "was not a party to the proceedings," while Lainault stated, "It is truly my dearest wish that this opens the way for other women."
- Breast cancer is the deadliest cancer among women in France, with nearly 13,000 deaths each year. This follows a 2023 case where a French nurse with 28 years of night shifts successfully had her cancer recognized as an occupational disease.
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The flight attendant was exposed to ionizing radiation and passive smoking over decades, AFP reports.
Airbus A350. Air France A former flight attendant from Air France managed in France to recognize her breast cancer as a professional disease. The decision, taken by the social centre of the Bayonne Court of Justice in the southwest of the country in early July, is considered a first in the French air sector and can open the way for similar requests from other aviation professionals. Sophie Lainault, 59 years old, worked for Air France between 19…
For some 30 years, a woman worked as a flight attendant for Air France, and at that time she became ill with breast cancer. Now she has won a groundbreaking verdict.
Flight attendant wins landmark breast cancer ruling
A flight attendant in France has succeeded in having her breast cancer recognized as an occupational disease, a first for the country’s aviation industry, her lawyer and a trade union said.The ruling — which recognized that Sophie Lainault, a former flight attendant for Air France, had frequently wo
A court decision from last July acknowledged that breast cancer that had reached an ex-hostess of the air was related to her professional activity. This is the first time that a decision to...
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