Serving Those Who Serve Us

By this point, you might be wondering: why firefighters? Why a carcinogen tracker? Our planet is teeming with problems that need to be solved. Climate change, world peace, what to make for dinner tonight. So of all the problems we could have chosen to face head-on, what in the world made us look twice at the rate of cancer in firefighters?

The answer is simple: we want to serve those who serve.

Think about it: when that cooking fire gets out of control, who can you count on to come to the rescue? When you’ve made it safely out of your burning home but your grandmother, your child, or your pet is nowhere to be seen, who will run back inside to save those most important to you? From forest fires that devour the sides of mountains to fires sprung from faulty electrical outlets, firefighters are there when we need them, risking their lives to keep us and our loved ones safe.

But who is there for the firefighters? Who can they turn to when they face life-threatening situations in their personal lives? Running into a burning building is an obvious safety hazard, but breathing in smoke day after day, year after year can be just as detrimental to firefighters’ health. The prevalence of cancer in the firefighter community is alarming, and we decided that we wanted to be the ones who were there for them in their hour of need.

Enter Exposure Journal.

We know it’s just a small part of the equation, but we figured that if we could help firefighters keep track of their exposure to carcinogens over the course of their careers, then maybe the log they kept could be the thing that encourages them to call their doctors, schedule an exam, go for a yearly physical, or get that symptom checked out. And maybe that doctor visit, that early detection, could be the thing that saves them.

Of course, this is all speculation — we can’t know for sure that the work we’re doing will go on to save lives. But what we do know for sure is that we want to be there for firefighters in whatever way we possibly can, just as they are always there for us.