The mortality rate for all cancers among firefighters is 1.6 times higher than in the general population, a report has revealed. The Fire Brigade Union commissioned its own study on the safety of firefighters because of the reported lack of research in this area.
General Secretary Matt Wrack told the All Party Parliamentary Fire Safety and Rescue Committee that the UK is lagging behind other countries in providing care for firefighters, according to the Mirror.
He said: “The findings were alarming, firefighters diagnosed with cancers at an alarming rate and younger than others in the community – and diagnosed at a later stage in the illness.
“There are better practices in many other services across the world.
“We are concerned about the level of health monitoring that exists.”
Meanwhile, Professor Anna Stec, of University of Central Lancashire, studied 11,000 firefighters for the FBU.
She said: “People are clearly dying earlier than they should do.”
This comes as the World Health Organisation declared firefighting a carcinogenic occupation.
It was also recently revealed by the Mirror that Firefighters who served at the Grenfell Tower disaster have been diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Prof Stec claimed that crews were exposed to asbestos at the West London tower block in the June 2017 fire, and a health screening scheme was recommended in 2018 but never acted on by the Government.
The Fire Brigade Union wants MPs to amend legislation so that firefighters with cancer can receive support, treatment and compensation without having to prove what chemical and fire caused their cancer.
Firefighter Steven Burns, 51, from Hampshire, slammed “the inactivity of the Government”.
He joined at 34 and has had 15 tumours removed over the span of seven years, which he blames on his job.
Mr Burns said: “We need to be listened to. I’m going to a colleague’s funeral, he was 49 and died of kidney cancer.
“It was 100 percent his job as well. We are dying at least 10 years younger than the general public and it needs to be admitted.
“We need to put things in place to prevent it.”
