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Fire Fighter Diseases

Fire fighting is a dangerous occupation. Firefighters put their lives at risk just putting out fires and saving lives in the process. Firefighters also put their lives at risk because they are susceptible to diseases that the act of fire fighting makes them prone to get.

  1. Heart Disease

    • Coronary heart disease accounts for 45% of deaths among firefighters on duty according to the article “Emergency Duties and Deaths from Heart Disease among Firefighters in the United States” in the New England Journal of Medicine in March of 2007. Why is this the case? The possible answers are physical exertion, emergency responses and dangerous duties. These things also affect workers in other high-stress occupations. Other explanations for the high rate of heart disease are exposure to smoke and chemicals, physical exertion because of the handling of heavy equipment and materials, stress the heat from a fire causes, psychological stressors and the long, irregular work hours. Whatever the reason, heart disease is the most frequent cause of death among firefighters.

    Parkinson's Disease

    • Another disease prevalent among firefighters is Parkinson’s disease. This may be because firefighters are exposed to chemicals and other toxins. When these toxins burn together, damage to the nervous system is possible. The incidence of Parkinson’s disease, which is a disease of the nervous system, is significantly higher among firefighters than in the general population. An article about this is, “Prevalence of Parkinson's disease among firefighters," in the May 4, 1990, issue of Neurology.

    Cancer

    • Firefighters are at a greater risk for developing four different types of cancer than the general population. Male firefighters are two times as likely to develop testicular cancer. Firefighters also have a significantly higher rate of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and prostate cancer (for male firefighters) than the general population. They are at a greater risk for coming down with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow. These findings are in the November 2007 issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

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