25 Years · September 11, 2001 – September 11, 2026
Twenty-five years after September 11, we honor the firefighters and first responders who answered the call—and recognize the lasting health consequences many continue to face. Cancer remains one of the greatest health threats facing firefighters. FCSN is bringing together experts in medicine, research and the fire service to advance firefighter-specific cancer screening recommendations and help improve opportunities for earlier detection. This anniversary is a moment to remember their sacrifice—and act on what we have learned to better protect today's firefighters and generations to come.
Tell the stories of the people still paying for that day, in their own words.
Early detection is the difference. Push for screening built for this profession.
Stand with firefighters and their families through diagnosis, treatment, and after.
Twenty-five years of this did not happen quietly.
Get InvolvedNational Initiative for Firefighter Cancer Screening
The National Initiative for Firefighter Cancer Screening Recommendations is a first-of-its-kind effort led by FCSN to develop evidence-based cancer screening recommendations specifically for firefighters. Working with leading experts in oncology, occupational medicine, epidemiology and the fire service, FCSN is developing scientifically grounded recommendations that account for firefighters' unique occupational exposures and risks—with the goal of advancing earlier detection and saving lives.
Existing national cancer screening recommendations are designed for the general population. Firefighters face risks the general population does not.
The 25 years
September 11 is remembered as a day that changed our nation. For the firefighters and first responders who answered the call—and for the families and communities who have lived with its lasting impact—the consequences did not end that day.
Twenty-five years later, their stories continue.
The FDNY loses 343 members in a single morning, the deadliest day in the history of the American fire service. Thousands more first responders, from FDNY, NYPD, the Port Authority, and departments across the country, converge on Lower Manhattan, the Pentagon, and Shanksville. Nobody is thinking about what they are breathing.
Read moreRecovery work at Ground Zero runs until the end of May 2002. For nine months, responders work in a chemical environment that includes asbestos, benzene, silica, dioxins, heavy metals, and pulverized building material. Respiratory protection is inconsistent and, for long stretches, effectively unavailable. The health consequences are decades away from being understood.
Read moreThe Firefighter Cancer Support Network begins as firefighters helping firefighters through a cancer diagnosis, one at a time, through mentoring and direct support. It grows into a national organization.
Read moreThe James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act is signed, creating the World Trade Center Health Program and reopening the Victim Compensation Fund. It is named for an NYPD detective who worked the pile and died in 2006. It is the first federal acknowledgment that the day kept killing people.
Read moreEleven years after the attacks, roughly 60 types of cancer are formally added to the list of WTC-related health conditions. The federal government now recognizes on paper what responders had been burying friends over for a decade. Prostate cancer is added the following year.
Read moreThe Zadroga Act is reauthorized, extending the World Trade Center Health Program for the working lifetime of the people it covers. The number of members enrolled with a certified cancer keeps climbing.
Read moreAfter years of responders testifying before Congress, the Victim Compensation Fund is permanently authorized and fully funded. The fight to get there is itself a measure of how long the country took to accept that 9/11 did not end on 9/11.
Read moreThe International Agency for Research on Cancer reclassifies occupational exposure as a firefighter as a Group 1 human carcinogen, the highest classification there is. That puts the job in the same category as tobacco and benzene. The finding is based on sufficient evidence for mesothelioma and bladder cancer, with limited evidence for colon, prostate, testicular, melanoma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. This is no longer a suspicion the fire service has about itself. It is settled science.
Read moreNames are added to the FDNY memorial wall every year for members lost to World Trade Center related illness. More than 400 members have now died from those illnesses, surpassing the 343 killed on September 11 itself. The people who worked the pile are still being diagnosed.
Read moreAt this year's memorial, a seventh bell rings. It is dedicated to the rescue workers, survivors, and community members who have died of 9/11-related illness in the twenty-five years since. It is the first time the ceremony formally counts them alongside the people lost that morning.
Read moreFCSN is building the first national cancer screening recommendations for the fire service, developed with FCSN's Health and Wellness Advisory Council of clinicians and researchers, for rollout in 2027. Screening is the only part of this story where the outcome is still open. A cancer found early is a different disease than a cancer found late.
Read moreBy the numbers
In the 12 months ending June 30, 2026, the World Trade Center Health Program recorded 10,393 WTC-related cancer certifications.
As of June 30, 2026, the World Trade Center Health Program was caring for 145,275 responders and survivors. Over the Program's lifetime, 57,044 members have had a cancer certified as a WTC-related health condition. Cancer was not originally covered; it was added in 2012 as the long-term consequences of exposure became undeniable. And within the FDNY alone, more than 400 members have since died from World Trade Center-related illnesses, surpassing the 343 members killed on September 11 itself.
Source: World Trade Center Health Program quarterly summary, data through June 30, 2026.
Firefighter cancer 101
Exposure is cumulative, and it does not reset between fires. A firefighter's risk clock starts at hire.
Doing It Right is FCSN's award-winning cancer awareness and prevention program, recognized by the Congressional Fire Services Institute and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, and built with fire service leaders and cancer researchers. It is free, practical, and is now required by three states for every firefighter to receive.
Get the Guide from FCSNAvailable from FCSN's Doing It Right page.
FAQ
Straight answers about the campaign, the science, and what FCSN is building.
"The Sacrifice Didn't End on 9/11" marks the 25th anniversary of September 11 by honoring the firefighters and first responders who answered the call—and recognizing the lasting health consequences many continue to face.
Their stories also shine a light on a broader reality: firefighters across the country face increased cancer risks from occupational exposures. The campaign uses this moment of remembrance to raise awareness, encourage earlier detection and screening, and help protect today's firefighters and future generations.
Throughout September 2026. New stories and resources will be shared during the month, including a new film each Friday and a special anniversary piece on September 11.
The Firefighter Cancer Support Network (FCSN), a national nonprofit that has supported firefighters diagnosed with cancer and their families since 2005. FCSN is also leading the National Initiative for Firefighter Cancer Screening Recommendations.
Twenty-five years after September 11, we know more about the long-term health consequences of occupational exposures and the cancer risks firefighters face throughout their careers.
In 2022, the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer classified occupational exposure as a firefighter as carcinogenic to humans. The 25th anniversary is an important moment to honor those who answered the call and paid the ultimate sacrifice, to share what we have learned, and to turn greater awareness into action that can better protect future generations of firefighters.
No. This campaign is about awareness and action. You can help by sharing these stories, learning more about firefighter cancer risks and supporting efforts to advance earlier detection and screening.
If you are a firefighter, explore FCSN's resources to learn more about steps you can take to reduce your risk and advocate for your health.
Firefighters and first responders living with cancer, and family members of those who did not survive it. Each recorded themselves, in their own words, answering the same set of questions. Nothing is scripted.
It causes it. In July 2022 the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organization, classified occupational exposure as a firefighter as carcinogenic to humans, Group 1. That is the agency's highest classification and the same one applied to tobacco smoke and benzene. The evidence was strongest for mesothelioma and bladder cancer, with additional evidence for colon, prostate, and testicular cancer, melanoma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Scale and duration. Recovery work ran for roughly nine months in an environment loaded with asbestos, benzene, silica, dioxins, heavy metals, and pulverized building debris, often without consistent respiratory protection. Most fireground exposures are measured in minutes. This one was measured in months.
FCSN is not publishing a single figure here. Counts vary by source and by who is included, FDNY, NYPD, Port Authority, other World Trade Center responders, or those who responded at the Pentagon and Shanksville. What is not in dispute is that responders have continued to die from 9/11-related illnesses every year since 2001, and the long-term health toll extends far beyond those who died that day. For official data, the World Trade Center Health Program publishes enrollment and certified-condition figures.
Yes. The lasting health consequences experienced by those who responded on September 11—at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in Shanksville—underscore the serious risks that can come with occupational exposures. But these risks are not limited to 9/11 responders. Firefighters across the country are exposed to carcinogens throughout their careers. In 2022, occupational exposure as a firefighter was classified as carcinogenic to humans. This campaign honors those who answered the call on 9/11 while using what we have learned to help protect every firefighter serving today and in the future.
Two things working together: prevention and early detection. Prevention means following best practices every day, including Preliminary Exposure Reduction, reducing unnecessary exposures, and maintaining clean PPE habits covered in our Doing It Right program. Early detection means screening on a schedule appropriate to a firefighter's exposures and risk. Prevention lowers the odds. Screening can change the outcome when prevention is not enough.
FCSN is developing the first set of cancer screening recommendations written specifically for the fire service, rather than adapting general-population recommendations that assume an average risk profile. Firefighters are not an average-risk population, and existing national screening recommendations are designed for the general public and do not account for the unique occupational exposures firefighters experience.
Because building them takes an extensive scientific and clinical process. Most national screening recommendations are written for the general public rather than for occupations with unique exposures. Firefighters experience complex exposure patterns that vary across an entire career, which makes risk assessment harder than standard population screening models. Recommendations also have to be supported by enough evidence to show that earlier screening improves outcomes without driving unnecessary testing. Until recently there was no national effort to convene the scientific, medical and fire service communities around a single process.
The evidence base got strong enough. The creation of the CDC/NIOSH National Firefighter Registry for Cancer, alongside decades of occupational cancer research, significantly strengthened what is known about firefighter cancer risk and created an opportunity that did not exist before.
The Health and Wellness Advisory Council, convened by FCSN, bringing together nationally recognized leaders in oncology, occupational medicine, firefighter health, epidemiology, public health and fire service leadership.
Following completion of the scientific review and consensus development process, FCSN plans to begin rolling out the National Firefighter Cancer Screening Recommendations in 2027.
FCSN was founded by firefighters and has spent more than two decades standing beside them through prevention, education, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship and family support.
Today, FCSN's key supporters and partners include the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), the Congressional Fire Services Institute, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), Firefighter Close Calls (FFCC), and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), among many other respected fire-service organizations. FCSN is also a founding member of the Fire Service Occupational Cancer Alliance.
Rather than replacing the role of medical organizations, FCSN is serving as the catalyst that unites researchers, clinicians, fire service leaders and stakeholders around recommendations that are scientifically rigorous, broadly supported, and practical for firefighters nationwide.
Three things, none of which require waiting for the recommendations. Train your firefighters using FCSN's Doing It Right education program. Make sure your members understand their cancer screening options and presumptive coverage. And encourage every firefighter to enroll in the NIOSH National Firefighter Registry for Cancer, career or volunteer, active or retired, with or without cancer. Better participation means better data, and better data helps us better understand and reduce cancer in the fire service.
Yes. That is the original reason FCSN exists. FCSN provides one-on-one mentoring from firefighters who have been through it, plus support for families. Contact FCSN directly.
Get help nowCareer or volunteer, active or retired. Firefighters, EMS, and immediate family.
Who is writing the recommendations
The National Initiative brings together leading experts in oncology, occupational medicine, epidemiology and the fire service to develop evidence-based cancer screening recommendations that reflect the unique risks firefighters face.
FCSN's Health and Wellness Advisory Council and its work will help establish the foundation for national firefighter-specific screening recommendations and their implementation.
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For departments and partners
Everything a department, union or partner organization needs to run this campaign locally. Graphics, captions, and the story films, ready to share.
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This campaign is not a fundraising drive. If you want to support the work directly, here is how.
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