A Pentagon study has found a high rate of cancer among military pilots and has shown for the first time that the ground crews who fuel, maintain and launch these planes are also getting the disease, reports Associated Press.

Retired military aviators have long sought to draw attention to the large number of Air Force pilots and airmen on the ground who have contracted cancer. They were told that previous military studies had shown that they were at no greater risk than the general US population.

In its annual study of nearly 900,000 airmen who flew or worked on military aircraft between 1992 and 2017, the Pentagon found that female crew members had an 87% higher rate of melanoma and a 39% higher rate of thyroid cancer, while men had a 16% higher rate of prostate cancer and a 16% higher rate of breast cancer in women than the rest of the population. Overall, there were 24% more cases of all types of cancer among the crew.

The study found that ground crew had a 19% higher rate of brain and nervous system cancer, a 15% higher rate of thyroid cancer and a 9% higher rate of kidney cancer, while women had a 7% higher rate of breast cancer. The overall rate of all types of cancer was 3% higher.

The study “demonstrates that it is time for leaders and policymakers to move from skepticism to faith and active help,” said retired Air Force Col. Vince Alcazar, who has appealed to the Pentagon and Congress for help.

The study was proposed by Congress in the 2021 defense bill. Now that the higher rates have been found, the Pentagon should conduct a larger analysis to try to understand why flight crews are getting sick.