Durham firefighter's idea sparks new cancer study

Firefighters are at a higher risk for some types of cancer because of the chemicals and particles they’re exposed to when they respond to a fire. It's not just in the air -- chemicals can even seep into their gear.

The Durham Fire Department is testing out a new way to reduce dangerous particles and decrease the rate of cancer in firefighters.

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For Durham firefighters, cancer is personal. One of their colleagues, Wayne Page, died from it a few months ago.

"Firefighter cancer is pretty prevalent in modern firefighting right now," one firefighter said. "I think it’s at the front of everyone’s mind."

A Durham firefighter had an idea to clean gear using what looks similar to an upholstery cleaner on the scene of a fire immediately after responding to the call.

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North Carolina State University researcher Dr. Bryan Ormond is working to see if the cleaner is effective. If it is, he said it could be used by firefighters across the country.

"It's the idea of, let’s get off as much of this contamination as possible before they get back into the engine to come back to the station," he said.

Currently, firefighter gear and equipment is taken to a warehouse for cleaning, so contaminants stay on uniforms and equipment longer.

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"Hopefully, in the future, we won’t have to think of cancer and firefighter in the same sentence," Ormond said.

Another cancer study involving Durham firefighters is also underway with the Duke Cancer Institute. As part of that study, firefighters are wearing wristbands while on the job so researchers can study what cancer-causing chemicals they’re exposed to.