Logo

Firefighter Cancer Awareness:

"People who don't have cancer rarely give cancer a second thought. All their life they have been conditioned to believe that the medical community is diligently making progress in the "War Against Cancer." They believe there is nothing to worry about. If they get cancer, the medical community will take good care of them. All of this is an assumption that could cost a person their life!"

News Bulletin

Information on cancer.
  • 10-04 and 10-26-2008 - White Bear Lake Firefighter Bob Peterson benefit and fund raiser - Poster
  • 06-24-2008 - Oak Grove Firefighter Alan Dahl benefit July 27 2008 from 2pm - 6pm - Poster
  • 04-17-2008 - Long Lake Firefighter Steve Becker dies from Stage 4 lung cancer. -  Funeral details  
  • 03-15-2008 - Oronoco Firefighter Drew Hewitt - Funeral Details
  • 02-29-2008 - Cancer Calls- Hope it is the Wrong Number
    by Becky Sherek RN/MS Northern Health & Fitness Plus
  • 02-22-2008 - Rochester Firefighter Joe Farrell - Funeral Details
  • 01-22-2008 - Michigan FIREFIGHTER CANCER WELLNESS Bill
  • Mark Noble Story - Click here
  • Minn State Law - Workers Comp - Click here
  • Cancer - League of MN Cities (LMNC) - click here
  • Cancer Risk Among Firefighters: A Review and
    Meta-analysis of 32 Studies - click here
  • Carcinogenicity of shift-work, painting, and firefighting - click here

Types of Tests to Detect Cancer - click here

Tumor Markers - What Are Tumor Markers?

Tumor markers are substances that can be found in the body when cancer is present. They are usually found in the blood or urine. They can be products of the cancer cells themselves or of the body in response to cancer or other conditions. Most tumor markers are proteins.

There are many different tumor markers. Some are seen only in a single type of cancer, while others can be found in many types of cancer.

To test for a tumor marker, the doctor sends a sample of the patient's blood or urine to a lab. The marker is usually found by combining the blood or urine with man made antibodies designed to react with that specific protein.

This is a must read article - click here

Information that you can take to your Doctor - click here

American Cancer Society Guidelines for the Early Detection of Cancer, 2004 - click here

Robert A. Smith, PhD, Vilma Cokkinides, PhD and Harmon J. Eyre, MD


Dr. Smith is Director of Cancer Screening, Cancer Control Science Department, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA.
Dr. Cokkinides is Program Director for Risk Factor Surveillance, Department of Epidemiology and Research Surveillance, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA.
Dr. Eyre is Executive Vice President for Research and Medical Affairs, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA, and Editor in Chief of CA.


Epidemiologic studies of firefighters have noted excess cancer risks compared with the general population.  Consistent patterns are difficult to discern due to the large variations in exposure across different types of fires and different groups of firefighters.  Relative risks were consistently increased, however, for three types of cancer:  testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Acute and chronic inflammatory respiratory effects have been noted in firefighters, and this would provide a plausible mechanism for respiratory carcinogenesis.  Firefighters are exposed to numerous toxic chemicals, including many known or suspected carcinogens.  These intermittent exposures can be intense, and short-term exposure levels can be high for respirable particulate matter and for several carcinogens, notably benzene, benzo[a]pyrene, 1,3-butadiene, and formaldehyde.



Tracing Cancer's Cause

Firefighters Exposed to PCBs While Training More Than 20 Years Ago In Anne Arundel Seek a Study of Their Illness -- and Help With Coping

By Daniel de Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, July 15, 2006; Page B01

Dave Fowler spent a week in winter 1974 learning to fight fires inside a blackened structure called the Dollhouse. Trainers filled the basement with spent transformer oil and hay, and set them ablaze. Twenty trainees sat upstairs and ate smoke until they were about to vomit or pass out.

Full Story


Firefighters Face Increased Risk for Certain Cancers

Cincinnati—University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers have determined that firefighters are significantly more likely to develop four different types of cancer than workers in other fields.

 

Their findings suggest that the protective equipment firefighters have used in the past didn’t do a good job in protecting them against cancer-causing agents they encounter in their profession, the researchers say.

 

Full Story


Diesel Smoke Is Biggest Issue In Firehouse Safety

Even a hundred years before Rudolf Diesel invented his engine in the 1890s, hydrocarbon soot was already known to be a danger in the workplace. Soot is the very first chemical substance ever identified as an occupational health hazard, being linked to diseases among chimney sweeps in London in 1775.

In America two centuries later, it's time to come to grips with the liability faced by fire departments that fail to take heroic measures to protect employee health.

Diesel smoke has been listed as a cancer-causing chemical by the state of California since 1990. It is a combination of chemicals which vary somewhat, depending on engine characteristics and fuel quality. All diesel smoke contains an array of substances, each by itself scientifically linked to cancer - arsenic, benzene, formaldehyde, nickel, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Those toxic ingredients bind to the surface of microscopic particulate soot.

Effects of diesel emissions on fire personnel.
Prepared with the help of Frank Richter, Keith Harley, and Greg Michalak.
Effects of diesel emissions on fire personnel.

Full Story

Articles

  • Cancers Among Fire Fighters, John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Link
  • Related Nasal, Sinus, Throat Disorder Study, Dr. Gregory Bussell Link
  • Exposure to Benzene, A Story from a Fallen Hero Link
  • Loss of Smell and Taste Link
  • Firefighters at High Risk for Cancer Link



Listing By State Presumptive Legislation  For Cancer and Specific Disease
STATE

Cancer

Infectious Disease

Heart Disease

Lung Disease

Alabama

x

 x*

x

x

Alaska

x

 x*

x

x

Arizona

 x*

 x*

 

 

Arkansas

 

 

 

 

California

x

x

x

 

Colorado

 

x

x

x

Connecticut

 

 

x

 

Delaware

 

 

 

 

District of Columbia

 

 

 

 

Florida

 

 x*

x

 x*

Georgia

 

 

x

x

Hawaii

 

 

x

x

Idaho

 

 

x

x

Illinois

x

 x*

x

x

Indiana **

 

 

 

 

Iowa

 

 

x

x

Kansas

x

 

x

x

Kentucky

 

 

x

x

Louisiana

 x*

 

x

x

Maine

 

x

x

x

Maryland

 x*

 

x

x

Massachusetts

x

 

x

x

Michigan

 

 

x

x

Minnesota

x

x

x

x

Mississippi

 

 

 

 

Missouri

 

 

x

x

Montana

 

 

 

 

Nebraska

x

 

 

 

Nevada

x

 x*

x

x

New Hampshire

 

 

x

x

New Jersey

 

 

 

x

New Mexico

 

 

 

 

New York

 x*

 

 

 

North Carolina

 

 

 

 

North Dakota

x

 x*

x

x

Ohio

 

 

x

x

Oklahoma

x

 x*

x

x

Oregon

 

 

x

x

Pennsylvania

 

 x*

x

x

Rhode Island

x

x

 

x

South Carolina

 

 

x

x

South Dakota

x

 

x

x

Tennessee ***

x

 

x

x

Texas

x

 x*

x

x

Utah

 

 x*

x

x

Vermont

 

 

 x*

 

Virginia

 x*

 x*

x

x

Washington

x

x

x

x

West Virginia

 

 

 

 

Wisconsin

 x*

 

x

x

Wyoming

        





* Only certain diseases in these categories are covered
** Legislation pending


*** Only certain localities within the state





Thumbnail
Be proactive and get your cancer screening today. 





Join our email list - click here

Free viewers are required for some of the attached documents.
They can be downloaded by clicking on the icons below.
Download Acrobat Reader    Download Word Viewer    Download Excel Viewer    Download PowerPoint Viewer    Download QuickTime Player    Download Real Player  
Media Player
Additional Menu Items [Top]