Humberside firefighters to get new training to reduce cancer risk
It's after research revealed they are four times more likely to be diagnosed with the disease than the general population
Humberside firefighters are set to receive new training, in a bid to reduce additional risk of cancer.
It's after research by the University of Central Lancashire found they were four times more likely to have been diagnosed with the disease than the general population.
The Fire Brigades Union, which helped to fund the research, is launching the 'DECON' programme, which focuses on cleaning and decontamination.
Researchers think the increased likelihood of a cancer diagnosis is because of the toxic substances produced by fires.
Gavin Marshall, the Fire Brigades Union secretary in Humberside, said: "Obviously we have breathing apparatus when we go into fires, but there's been other tasks we've carried out in the past. Sometimes we've extinguished the fire and we relax our PPE, and we've never really quite understood the implications with that, and the toxins and howq they linger around.
"When we enter the Fire and Rescue service, we always know that we're going to risk our life for others. The biggest danger to us is the actual compartment where it's on fire, and this was probably a really little seed of doubt at the back of the mind.
"The level that we talk about explosions, flashovers and backdraughts, cancer needs to held in that same thing. This is a potentially life-threatening and life-changing disease, and we can do things to prevent it and reduce that risk to ourselves."