By Dr. Tim Sandle
March 7, 2025
DIGITAL JOURNAL
Firefighters help control the spread of the Auto Fire in Oxnard, northwest of Los Angeles, California - Copyright AFP ETIENNE LAURENT
Firefighters who fight fires in wildland urban interface zones, where undeveloped and developed land meet, appear to experience genetic changes that may help explain their elevated risk for certain cancers as well as for other diseases.
This health issue is according to a study led by the University of Michigan.
In a collaboration with the Los Angeles and Orange County fire departments, local and federal agencies and public health and medicine researchers from UCLA, the University of Miami and the University of Arizona, scientists used blood samples available through the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study to compare changes in microRNAs and DNA methylation.
The comparison was between firefighters who were exposed to wildland-urban interface, or WUI, fires and those who were not. Firefighters’ exposures to WUI fires are distinct as compared to structure or wildland fires.
Firefighters responding to wildland urban interface fires face special occupational hazards. These occur through exposure to a complex mix of chemicals from burning vegetation, structures, vehicles and other human-made materials.
Fire fighters do so often without respiratory protection and for extended periods. This news comes as Los Angeles is recovering from devastating fires in January and as climate change appears to be increasing fire risk worldwide.
“The molecular changes we’re seeing may help to explain why firefighters face higher rates of certain cancers and other health conditions later in their careers. Understanding these biological pathways gives us potential targets for developing protective strategies that could reduce health risks for firefighters,” Jackie Goodrich, the study’s lead author and research associate professor of environmental health sciences at the U-M School of Public Health, explains in a research note.
Wildfires have inflicted unprecedented destruction on Los Angeles, America’s second largest city – Copyright AFP JOSH EDELSON
A key study finding showed that 50 microRNAs had changed in the 10-month follow-up in firefighters who responded to at least one WUI fire. More specifically, one microRNA with known tumour suppression activity decreased in firefighters who had responded to a WUI fire in the prior 10 months versus those who had not.
The affected microRNAs play a role in regulating immune function, inflammation, neurological disorders and cancer, among other conditions and diseases. No significant changes in DNA methylation were found.
“This study builds upon previous evidence from our studies in firefighters that show epigenetic changes accumulating from years of exposure. These new results suggest that even exposure to one-time big events like WUI fires can trigger changes in microRNA expression linked to various disease pathways,” Goodrich adds, noting “Our next steps are to determine whether these changes persist long-term and to develop interventions that could protect firefighter health.”
The study appears in the journal Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis, and it is titled “Epigenetic Modifications Associated With Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) Firefighting”.
Firefighters help control the spread of the Auto Fire in Oxnard, northwest of Los Angeles, California - Copyright AFP ETIENNE LAURENT
Firefighters who fight fires in wildland urban interface zones, where undeveloped and developed land meet, appear to experience genetic changes that may help explain their elevated risk for certain cancers as well as for other diseases.
This health issue is according to a study led by the University of Michigan.
In a collaboration with the Los Angeles and Orange County fire departments, local and federal agencies and public health and medicine researchers from UCLA, the University of Miami and the University of Arizona, scientists used blood samples available through the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study to compare changes in microRNAs and DNA methylation.
The comparison was between firefighters who were exposed to wildland-urban interface, or WUI, fires and those who were not. Firefighters’ exposures to WUI fires are distinct as compared to structure or wildland fires.
Firefighters responding to wildland urban interface fires face special occupational hazards. These occur through exposure to a complex mix of chemicals from burning vegetation, structures, vehicles and other human-made materials.
Fire fighters do so often without respiratory protection and for extended periods. This news comes as Los Angeles is recovering from devastating fires in January and as climate change appears to be increasing fire risk worldwide.
“The molecular changes we’re seeing may help to explain why firefighters face higher rates of certain cancers and other health conditions later in their careers. Understanding these biological pathways gives us potential targets for developing protective strategies that could reduce health risks for firefighters,” Jackie Goodrich, the study’s lead author and research associate professor of environmental health sciences at the U-M School of Public Health, explains in a research note.
Wildfires have inflicted unprecedented destruction on Los Angeles, America’s second largest city – Copyright AFP JOSH EDELSONA key study finding showed that 50 microRNAs had changed in the 10-month follow-up in firefighters who responded to at least one WUI fire. More specifically, one microRNA with known tumour suppression activity decreased in firefighters who had responded to a WUI fire in the prior 10 months versus those who had not.
The affected microRNAs play a role in regulating immune function, inflammation, neurological disorders and cancer, among other conditions and diseases. No significant changes in DNA methylation were found.
“This study builds upon previous evidence from our studies in firefighters that show epigenetic changes accumulating from years of exposure. These new results suggest that even exposure to one-time big events like WUI fires can trigger changes in microRNA expression linked to various disease pathways,” Goodrich adds, noting “Our next steps are to determine whether these changes persist long-term and to develop interventions that could protect firefighter health.”
The study appears in the journal Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis, and it is titled “Epigenetic Modifications Associated With Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) Firefighting”.
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