Firefighting and Cancer: The National Firefighter Registry (NFR) - Kenneth Fent, PhD, CIH and Miriam Siegel, DrPH – Center for Disease Control (CDC) and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

Presented at the NFPA Urban Fire Forum in September 2019

This presentation was provided to participants at the 2019 NFPA Urban Fire Forum. It includes current information on firefighter cancer risk and an overview of the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act of 2018. Previous studies, including a study completed by NIOSH, clearly indicate that career firefighters are at higher risk of cancer than the general population. Although these are extensive studies of the career firefighter population, they are limited by the inclusion of only small numbers of women and minorities, as well as a lack of data on volunteer firefighters. The goal of the National Firefighter Registry (NFR) is to track firefighters’ cancer risk over time to better understand the link between workplace exposures and cancer. This presentation provides the most current information addressing who might be included in the NFR; recruiting NFR participants; NFR registration information; what will be addressed by the NFR; and the timeline for implementing the NFR.