Firefighters Twice As Likely To Get Certain Cancers
Firefighters are twice as likely to get certain types of cancer than the general public, according to recent studies. But scientists say stricter firefighting safety practices could lower those rates.
The Sedona Fire District has implemented new safety precautions in light of last year’s diagnosis of one of their own.
Whether he’s team roping cattle or fighting fires, Travis Powell, 43, admits to being an adrenaline junky.
“We’re the kind of people we want to be running in when everyone is running out,” Powell said.
With his spiky blond hair and fiery spirit Powell is the kind of person who can’t stay away from work too long. But he’s currently recovering from a bone marrow transplant at the Scottsdale Cancer Center. His doctors said it’s his only hope at beating Chronic Lymphatic Lymphoma or cancer of the blood.
“They told me that I wouldn’t live to see my daughter’s 8th birthday, if I didn’t do something,” Powell said.
His doctor diagnosed him when Powell went in for his annual checkup two years ago.
“What they would consider a high white count is 8,000 to 10,000,” Powell said. “And at the time of my diagnosis my white count was 750,000, so it was off the charts.”
Thanks to thorough recordkeeping at the Sedona Fire District, its insurance company told Powell he’s the first Arizona firefighter to be covered under worker’s compensation.
“You don’t ever sit around and think about 'is what I’m doing detrimental to me,'” Powell said. “You’re there to make a difference in people’s lives. You don’t think about the risks.”
But the risks are many, said Grace LeMasters, University of Cincinnati epidemiology professor.
She listed a multitude of cancer-causing agents including soot, cadmium, inorganic lead, arsenic and diesel exhaust.
LeMasters examined the medical information of 110,000 firefighters because she wanted a more comprehensive view of the cancers firefighters potentially face on the job.
“When they are fighting the fire their skin is dilating and that is because of the heat,” LeMasters said. “And when your skin becomes more porous, this soup of cancer agents that they’re exposed to can be absorbed through the skin much better.”
Buzz Lechowski, the division chief of operations for the Sedona Fire District, said it’s critical firefighters wear breathing gear on the scene of a fire, even after the blaze is put out. He pointed to the 1,140 people, including firefighters, who didn’t wear their masks in the debris and ash of Ground Zero and got cancer after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Lechowski can’t speak for every department, but he said Sedona firefighters are meticulous about wearing their equipment properly and keeping it clean.
“The old crusty salty firefighter thing was ‘oh look I’m all black, my coat’s black, my helmet’s all dirty and as I walk there’s soot flashing off me,’” Lechowski said. “We just don’t live in that world anymore.”
Lechowski said firefighters also face different threats today.
“A house used to have wood furniture, pine paneling and all these things,” Lechowski said. “Now it has plastic garbage cans, window coverings. You live in an oil house now because everything’s plastic.”
Lechowski said the Sedona Fire District is improving its practices and training all the time with their brother Travis Powell in mind.
“He’s one of the most stubborn people I’ve ever met,” Lechowski said. “If anyone can kick cancer’s butt it’s Travis.”
Powell and his family are living in a hotel next to the hospital. His wife Laura Powell is homeschooling their two children to keep them away from any potential illness that could be fatal to their father, whose immune system is compromised.
“We’ve been married for 20 years,” Laura Powell said. “You just never think you’ll see your spouse have to go through that. Then when you put small children in that mix it’s been difficult because you want everybody to be taken care of.”
Travis Powell hopes to be home with his family in Chino Valley next month, and fighting fires as soon as he’s able.
