Abstract
PURPOSE Firefighters around the world are exposed to physical hazards and toxic chemical agents during fire incident response. Occupational epidemiologic studies of the firefighter workforce have documented an excess cancer risk for brain, digestive, genitourinary, and lymphohematopoietic organs compared with the general population. Despite the elevated cancer risk, little is known about what specific types of carcinogenic chemicals first responders encounter during a typical work shift, particularly in low-resources settings, like the Dominican Republic. This pilot study characterizes objective measurements of carcinogenic exposure using passive sampling silicone-based wristbands among Dominican firefighters. METHODS Firefighters from a metropolitan fire service in the Dominican Republic were asked to wear a silicone-based wristband during one typical 24-hour shift. A pre- and postshift survey was administered to the firefighter to assess their self-reported sociodemographic, employment, and work shift characteristics. Wristbands were collected after their 24-hour shift and processed for the type and quantity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a family of known carcinogenic compounds, to which firefighters were exposed. RESULTS Among 15 firefighters who wore a wristband during their 24-hour shift, 73.3% responded to a fire with an average of 3.7 calls during the shift. Fire incident responses included structural fires (54.5%), outside and other fires (36.4%), and vehicle fires (9.1%). Total PAH exposure was significantly higher among Dominican firefighters who responded to a fire compared with firefighters with no fire during their shift (261 parts per billion [ppb] v 117 ppb, respectively; P = .003). Among the 19 PAHs quantified, low-molecular-weight phenanthrene was present in the highest concentration (32 ppb) among firefighters not responding to fires. CONCLUSION Passive objective sampling of PAHs using silicone-based wristbands among Dominican firefighters showed direct exposure to carcinogenic compounds during a typical 24-hour firefighter shift. Firefighters not attending a fire had lower levels of PAHs, suggesting carcinogenic contaminants are present at the fire station.