Firefighters face high risk of cancer

In addition to the immediate dangers they encounter on the job, firefighters also face a high risk of cancer. To get a better sense of what firefighters are being exposed to, researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health are collecting dust and monitoring air quality at firehouses around Boston.

The work is led by Emily Sparer, research associate with the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment’s Healthy Buildings Program. She spoke to CBS Boston for a July 17, 2018 story on Boston firefighters participating in this year’s Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) bike ride to raise money for cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. PMC funding helped support Sparer’s project, which she launched while working at Dana Farber.

Sparer, who was herself rescued from a fire, said of firefighters, “They’re the ones who are protecting us in our weakest moments and if there’s anything we can do to actually reduce their cancer rates we need to do it.”

Read CBS Boston article: Team Boston Fire Bikes PMC for Fellow Firefighters

Learn more

Firefighters’ workplace cancer risk explored (Harvard Chan School news)

Firefighting puts strain on the heart (Harvard Chan School news)