Description
Control and extinguish fires or respond to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk. Duties may include fire prevention, emergency medical service, hazardous material response, search and rescue, and disaster management. [SOC]
Firefighters are exposed to simple asphyxiants, chemical asphyxiants, and pulmonary irritants. [PMID 8903745] "We found no evidence of an excess lung cancer risk related to occupational exposure as a firefighter." [PMID 27820764] "Despite potential exposure to several occupational hazards, male Danish fiefighters have a lower mortality than both the Danish working population in general and Danish military employees." [PMID 29808435] "This study showed that Stockholm firefighters had an overall low risk of cancer. However, firefighters had an increased risk of stomach cancer compared to the reference population." [PMID 29164319] "Our results do not support an overall risk of cancer among Swedish firefighters . . ." [PMID 31463517] "Firefighters may be exposed to combustion products from fires (e.g. polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, particulate matter), building materials (e.g. asbestos), chemicals in firefighting foams (e.g. per- and polyfluorinated substances), flame retardants, diesel exhaust, as well as other hazards (e.g. night shift work and ultraviolet or other radiation). An IARC Monographs Working Group reviewed evidence from cancer studies and mechanistic studies in humans to assess the carcinogenic hazard to humans of occupational exposure as a firefighter and concluded that: Occupational exposure as a firefighter is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1)." [IARC: Occupational Exposure as a Firefighter, Volume 132, 2023]