After watching his good friend and fellow firefighter die of colon cancer, Chris Conner vowed to help other firefighters find ways to detect the disease in its early stages.
Conner, who is president of the Bedford Professional Firefighters Association, worked with Fire Chief Sean Fay and the City Council, and now Bedford is the first in the country to contract with an Indiana-based company, MorNuCo, which provides the ONCOblot test. The test detects a protein in the blood that is present in malignant cells.
The council voted recently to help pay for the tests, which begin in March at the Fire Department. Conner said the cost will be shared among the city, the firefighters association and each firefighter who receives the test.
In December, Lt. Keith Long died after he was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in 2013. The cancer eventually spread to his liver and lungs.