New test aims to help firefighters detect cancer earlier during awareness month
January is Fire Fighter Cancer Awareness Month.
The International Association of Fire Fighters reports nearly 80% of their members' line-of-duty deaths were due to cancer related to their work.
CBS News Miami has reported on the cancer risk to firefighters for more than a decade. Now, the Firefighter Cancer Initiative at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, is showing promising results for a swab test that checks for PFAs, otherwise known as forever chemicals.
Hialeah Fireman Eric Johnson knows the toll cancer takes. He battled cancer and is in remission. "I'm happy, I'm in remission. The hair's back. So, it's baby steps," Johnson told CBS News Miami.
"Every day you live knowing that most likely, the cancer will return and you have to face it. But you have to make the most of it. Smile every day. Pay it forward. Put a smile on someone else's face and live like every day, like it's your last."
As the Hialeah Fire Department's union president, he's teamed up with the FCI at Sylvester. He advocates for other firefighters to take the threat of cancer seriously.
He also helps lobby leaders to help protect those firefighters by making sure they have the health benefits they need should they get sick. "We've identified so many firefighters, so many risk factors that are attributed to the job which are increasing our chances of cancer."
The Firefighter Cancer Initiative advocates for care for firefighters and provides research into where the cancer threat lies. Dr. Erin Kobetz is the principal investigator at the FCI. She's investigated the connection between PFAs and the increased cancer rate in firefighters.
"PFAs are forever chemicals. They are resistant to water and heat, and they are in nearly everything that firefighters and everyday people are exposed to."
According to the National Institutes of Health, PFAs are linked to several cancers, including thyroid, kidney, breast and prostate cancers."
The FCI has developed a way to test firefighter gear for the forever chemical without potentially damaging or destroying expensive firefighter gear. Dr. Kobetz explains how the test works and why identifying PFAs in gear is so important. "We can take that swab back to our labs to detect PFAs and also quantify the amount." She went on to say, "It will ultimately enable s to quantify the amount of PFAs in the different things firefighters are exposed to and potentially link that to biology and cancer risk."
Dr. Kobetz also noted, PFAs are not the only type of chemical that poses a threat to firefighters. Poly aromatic hydrocarbon, often found in soot and smoke, are also studied for links to different cancers. That includes the onset and progression of the disease.
For veteran firefighters like Eric Johnson, the PFA swab test brings hope for the next generation of firefighters. That includes his two sons. "This can be groundbreaking. Groundbreaking for my son who's a fireman. For my younger son, who's becoming a fireman. They won't suffer like their dad did. They won't suffer like so many other people did," he said.
Johnson also had a simple request of everyone. "Get yourself checked. Every year." The first step in getting checked is seeing your doctor. They will help determine when and how you should be screened based on your health and your family's history.