TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Studies by University of Arizona Health Sciences, in collaboration with Tucson Fire Department, have helped provide evidence that occupational exposure does pose a cancer risk to firefighters.
Findings from these studies contributed to a larger body of evidence that led the International Agency for Research on Cancer to reclassify firefighters' occupational exposure from "possibly carcinogenic" to "carcinogenic."
Dr. Jeff Burgess, a UArizona public health professor, was one of 25 experts invited to take part in an IARC working group to review scientific literature on the topic. The group found evidence showing that occupational exposure causes mesothelioma and bladder cancer, and limited evidence that it causes colon cancer, prostate cancer, testicular cancer, melanoma of the skin and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Several of the findings, specifically about epigenetic and receptor-mediated mechanisms of cancer, were from studies Burgess led in collaboration with the Tucson Fire Department, an organization he has worked with for three decades.
"This is a really important outcome that our research has helped to support, but it's also just the beginning," said Burgess. "Now, it's our job to work with the fire service to help find ways of preventing these increased numbers of cancers."
Practical application of this research can be viewed as one of the marks of success in the partnership between the TFD and UArizona: The research has helped identify interventions that can reduce firefighter exposure.
And the TFD is now able to share these findings with other departments nationwide.
"I am so proud of the partnership with the University of Arizona Health Sciences and the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study," said Darin Wallentine, retired deputy chief of safety and wellness for the Tucson Fire Department. "During my time with the Tucson Fire Department and the Safety and Wellness Division, the Tucson Fire Department became a national leader in firefighter cancer research. Being named as a co-author in groundbreaking firefighter occupational exposure studies is a tremendous honor and a rewarding career achievement."
A summary of the final evaluations that led to the new classification was published in the journal The Lancet Oncology, titled "Carcinogenicity of occupational exposure as a firefighter."
"The new classification gives even more emphasis to the need for exposure reduction and to look at other ways that we might be able to modify the effects of exposures," Burgess said. "We need to figure out how to prevent or reverse those effects, beyond just reducing exposures."
KGUN 9 recently partnered with the Greater Tucson Fire Foundation as part of our Giving Project. The non-profit organization helps support firefighters' health and wellness with a number of free services, including cancer screenings.
For more information on the Fire Foundation:
The Greater Tucson Fire Foundation supplies free health and wellness resources for firefighters
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Anne Simmons is the digital executive producer for KGUN 9. Anne got her start in television while still a student at the University of Arizona. Before joining KGUN, she managed multiple public access television stations in the Bay Area and has worked as a video producer in the non-profit sector. Share your story ideas and important issues with Anne by emailing anne.simmons@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn.
