By Jamie Thompson
FireRescue1 Editor
WASHINGTON — Fire service organizations have criticized the “flawed” report released earlier this month that claimed there was no link between firefighting and cancer.
A joint statement by the IAFF and the IAFC said the paper was not credible and is reminiscent of the strategy once used by the tobacco industry, which denied for years that smoking caused lung disease and that nicotine was addictive.
The compelling body of evidence of an epidemiological correlation between firefighting and cancer has been used by 28 states and seven Canadian provinces to create responsible presumptive laws, it added.
In the report commissioned by the National League of Cities, researchers from TriData Corporation concluded there is a lack of “substantive scientific evidence” currently available to determine that firefighters face greater cancer than the general population.
The IAFF and the IAFC said the NLC has fought every single piece of presumptive legislation that they have worked to pass on behalf of firefighters.
“While we welcome additional research on the link between firefighting and cancer, the NLC’s propaganda is seriously flawed and must be tossed aside when investigating the need for presumptive laws for fire fighters and certain types of cancers,” the statement said.
It added that the presumptive laws in place in 28 states recognize that “firefighters work in a uniquely dangerous environment that exposes them to carcinogens that cannot be completely controlled by personal protective equipment and safety procedures, placing fire fighters at an increased risk of developing certain cancers.”
In a separate statement, Acting United States Fire Administrator Glenn A. Gaines said, “What is appropriate at this time is continued vigilance on the part of all firefighters to limit their exposure to toxins and known carcinogens by use of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), by proper decontamination of PPE and other equipment, and by use of diesel exhaust removal strategies in fire stations throughout our nation.”