9/11 NYC Firefighters More Prone to Cancer

9/11 NYC Firefighters More Prone to Cancer

The results of a series of studies conducted among firefighters and rescue workers who were heavily exposed to the World Trade Center and 9/11 attacks were published Friday. Firefighters and rescue workers are more likely to get cancer and could generally suffer higher illness rates, according to the studies conducted.

However, as reported by The Lancet, a medical journal on its 10^th year anniversary edition, scientists found out that death rates were lower among civilians and emergency staff who survived the attacks compared to the wider population of the greater New York City. It was indeed a day that has changed the historical trail of the United States of America and the whole world, the journal said.

A firefighter in New York City who rushed into the Twin Towers 10 years ago has a 19% higher chance of getting a cancer compared to colleagues who were not exposed and to the greater city population, one study reported. In another study, 263 cases of cancer were reported among exposed firefighters compared to the general New York City population data with only 238. While another study showed only 135 cancer cases among non-exposed firefighters compared to 161 from the New York City general population. David Prezant, the research lead and chief medical head of NYC Fire Department, has considered the health records of 9,853 male firefighters dating back the 9/11 attacks.

Posted by James Fried on Monday September 05 2011, 1:30 AM EST. Ref: CNN. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Nation. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0