US - Firefighter Cancer Support Network Releases White Paper on Firefighter Cancer What is the Firefighter Cancer Problem? Firefighter cancer is a looming personal catastrophe for each and every firefighter. Cancer is the most dangerous and unrecognized threat to the health and safety of our nation’s firefighters. Multiple studies, including the soon-to-be-released NIOSH cancer study, have repeatedly demonstrated credible evidence and biologic creditability for statistically higher rates of multiple types of cancers in firefighters compared to the general American population including: ■Testicular cancer (2.02 times greater risk) ■Multiple myeloma (1.53 times greater risk) ■Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (1.51 times greater risk) ■ Skin cancer (1.39 times greater risk) ■ Prostate cancer (1.28 times greater risk) ■Malignant melanoma (1.31 times great risk) ■ Brain cancer (1.31 times greater risk) ■ Colon cancer (1.21 times great risk) ■ Leukemia (1.14 times greater risk) ■ Breast cancer in women (preliminary study results from the San Francisco Fire Department) We are just beginning to understand the horrific magnitude of the problem, the depth of our naiveté, the challenges involved and the changes required in education, training, operations, medical screenings and personal accountability to effectively address cancer in the fire service. The signs of firefighters’ exposure to carcinogens are everywhere: ■ Photos appear every day of firefighters working in active and overhaul fire environments with SCBA on their backs but not masks on their faces. ■Firefighters still proudly wear dirty and contaminated turnout gear and helmets. ■Some fire instructors wear their carcinogen-loaded helmets and bunker gear as symbols of their firefighting experience. ■ Diesel exhaust, a recognized carcinogen, still contaminates many fire stations — apparatus bays as well as living, sleeping and eating quarters. ■ Many firefighters only have one set of gear which means they are continually re-contaminated from previous fires. ■ Some diesel exhaust systems — even when installed — are not used, are used incorrectly or are poorly maintained. ■Bunker gear still is stored in apparatus bays where it is bathed in diesel exhaust. ■Bunker gear goes unwashed for months at a time, even after significant fires. ■Many volunteers carry their contaminated gear in the trunks of their personal vehicles resulting in superheating and enhanced off-gassing of contaminants into the passenger compartment and sometimes even into their homes. ■ Firefighters put their contaminated gear into the cabs of their apparatus both before and after fires. ■ Some firefighters still take their contaminated bunker pants and boots into sleeping quarters. ■The interiors of apparatus cabs are rarely decontaminated. ■Many firefighters do not take showers immediately following fires. Full report available on fireengineering/articles/2013/08/firefighter-cancer-support-network-releases-white-paper-on-firefighter-cancer.html?sponsored=topic2
Posted on: Fri, 16 Aug 2013 08:33:10 +0000
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