U.S. Rep. Trey Hollingsworth met with local fire service members Wednesday to discuss a bill aimed at tackling increased cancer rates among firefighters.
The Firefighter Cancer Registry Act, co-sponsored by Indiana's 9th Congressional District representative, would provide the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the funding and capability to collect and analyze data related to cancer incidents within the profession. It would create a national, voluntary registry for firefighters who have been diagnosed with cancer.
A 2010 study by the CDC of almost 30,000 career firefighters across the country discovered they had a 9 percent higher rate of cancer diagnoses and 14 percent higher rate of cancer-related deaths compared to the general population.