Occupational Exposure as a Firefighter

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This volume of the IARC Monographs provides an evaluation of the carcinogenicity of occupational exposure as a firefighter.

Occupational exposure as a firefighter is complex and includes a variety of hazards resulting from fires and non-fire events. Firefighters can have diverse roles, responsibilities, and employment (e.g. full-time, part-time, volunteer) that vary widely across countries and change over their careers. Firefighters respond to various types of fire (e.g. structure, wildland, and vehicle fires) and other events (e.g. vehicle accidents, medical incidents, hazardous material releases, and building collapses). Wildland fires are increasingly encroaching on urban areas. Changes in types of fire, building materials, and personal protective equipment have resulted in significant changes in firefighter exposures over time.

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).