Cancer rate among NYC cops tripled since 9/11

2/7/2012

In the more than 10 years since the September 11 attacks, many have claimed first responders on the scene inhaled toxic materials that heightened their risk of developing cancer, and recent statistics seem to back up the assertion. The number of police officers applying for cancer-related disability pensions has nearly tripled in the years since the attacks, the New York Post reports.

The findings show that 297 officers have been diagnosed with myriad diseases since 2001. The most common was lung cancer, but doctors have found cancers affecting everything from the bile duct to the nose and tongue. Perhaps most startling is that the average age of the officers is just 44 years old.

The health woes of 9/11 first responders has been a large topic of discussion over the last decade, and these details may change the debate. Late in 2010, Congress passed the so-called Zadroga Bill, named after NYPD officer James Zadroga, to give medical coverage to emergency workers. However, earlier this summer federal health officials determined there was not enough evidence to add cancer to the maladies covered under the bill, according to NBC New York.