Exposure to potentially toxic combustion products in firefighters

Firefighting has been linked to a range of health effects including several cancers and respiratory diseases. This exposure to chemicals is likely to occur during firefighting and/or training and even indirectly through contaminated clothing and equipment brought back into fire stations. Due to the latency of long term health effects understanding current exposure to firefighters is an important tool in mitigating these long term health effects. Biomonitoring of chemical exposure in firefighters through the analysis of urine and blood samples is a way to determine current exposure. Through an extensive review Hydroxy-PAHs, OPFR metabolites and PBDEs were chosen to be the best biomarkers for exposure to firefighters. This study aims to investigate the level of exposure and the pathway by which firefighters are exposed to these chemicals.