Space radiation can turn healthy cells cancerous, study finds
A 2026 study has found that space radiation can push even untouched cells towards cancer through a "bystander effect".
Researchers exposed blood-vessel cells to iron ions at Brookhaven National Laboratory. The hit cells started a self-sustaining inflammatory loop involving two proteins, NF-kB and TNF-alpha.
Chemical signals from the damaged cells then harmed neighbouring cells that were never hit. In mice, these bystander cells developed tumours, the paper in Space: Science and Technology reported.
The finding alarms mission planners. On a three-year Mars trip, only about 3 per cent of an astronaut's cells would take a direct hit from an iron ion, but the bystander effect could multiply the cancer risk.
There is hope too. The team broke the cascade by blocking the TNF-alpha receptor, pointing to possible drugs that could protect deep-space crews.
The paper appeared in the journal Space: Science and Technology. The dose used in the lab was higher than what a Mars crew would absorb over a full mission.
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