A first-of-its-kind medical facility has opened in Utah, designed exclusively to detect cancer early among firefighters — a group proven to face a significantly higher risk of developing the disease due to their exposure to toxic environments.
The newly launched Utah Firefighter Health & Wellness Center, created by the Utah Firefighter Cancer Initiative, offers what experts are calling the most comprehensive cancer screening program for firefighters in the United States. Its mission is simple but life-saving: find cancer early and give firefighters a fighting chance to survive.
A Major Step Forward in Firefighter Health
The clinic’s opening follows the passage of House Bill 65 (HB65), approved unanimously by the Utah Legislature earlier this year. The bill secures three years of funding to support cancer prevention and screening programs for firefighters statewide — positioning Utah as a national leader in firefighter health and safety.
Studies show that firefighters face cancer rates up to seven times higher than the general public due to long-term exposure to carcinogenic materials. For Lehi Fire Chief Jeremy Craft, this issue hits close to home.
“I was diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer and kidney cancer,” Craft shared, recalling a screening trip to Arizona with several other fire chiefs. “Out of six of us, only one came back with clean results. I’ll never forget that, and I want to make sure fewer Utah firefighters face the same fate.”
Catching Cancer Before It’s Too Late
Driven by Craft’s experience and support from the Utah Firefighter Task Force, the center now conducts screenings for over 500 firefighters every year, using advanced imaging to detect 14 different types of cancer — including lung, prostate, kidney, and skin cancers that are especially prevalent among first responders.
“The only effective way we can combat firefighter cancer right now is through early detection,” said Brad Wardle, Director of the Utah Fire and Rescue Academy. “No other program in the country is screening firefighters as comprehensively as we are.”
Dr. Kurt Hegmann, a leading occupational health expert who has researched cancer risks among first responders for more than two decades, emphasized the importance of early diagnosis. “When you find something early, you may not know immediately whether you’ve saved their life,” he said. “But you’ve given them a real chance to survive and thrive into retirement.”
A Unified Effort to Protect Utah’s Firefighters
The new facility represents a collaboration among multiple organizations, including Utah Valley University, the Utah State Fire Chiefs Association, the Professional Firefighters of Utah, and the University of Utah–Weber State University Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health.
State leaders, including Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson and Rep. Casey Snider, attended the grand opening, commending the project as a milestone in Utah’s public safety and health innovation.
Beyond testing, the clinic also runs an active research program aimed at understanding the link between firefighting and cancer, improving prevention strategies, and supporting firefighters already diagnosed with the disease.
As Chief Craft puts it, “We can’t eliminate every risk firefighters face — but we can give them a chance to live longer, healthier lives by finding cancer before it’s too late.”
