Allentown firefighters are now eligible to receive annual blood tests that screen for evidence of over 50 cancers, officials announced at a Thursday news conference at the Allentown Fire Academy.
Via a partnership with Lehigh Valley Health Network and a new provision in their union contract, city firefighters will receive the Galleri blood test, developed by U.S. biotechnology company Grail, as part of their annual physicals.
The blood test does not diagnose cancer, but detects early signs that can help diagnose the disease earlier, leading to a better long-term prognosis, according to Grail.
Cancer is the No. 1 cause of line-of-duty deaths among firefighters, who are 9% more likely than the general population to be diagnosed with cancer and 14% more likely to die from the disease, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk said the city’s offer of enhanced cancer screenings shows its commitment to keeping employees safe and healthy.
“We recognize how important our city employees are to deliver your work, and we want to make sure that when they get in the door every day, that we are caring for them in every way that we can,” Tuerk said. “So that when they leave work for the day, or when they end their career at the city of Allentown, they are going home to the people that they love healthy, and that we are showing up for the people who show up for us every day.”
Firefighters face increased cancer risks because fires can create toxic mixtures of carcinogenic gas and particulate matter that they absorb via their lungs or their skin. Skin cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, bladder cancer and testicular cancer are among the most common cancers they are diagnosed with, although other types can also be service-connected.
Two Allentown firefighters have died of service-related cancer in recent years. Assistant Chief Christopher Kiskeravage died of occupational pancreatic cancer in 2023 — the city named its new fire academy training facility, where the news conference was held, in his honor. Fire Marshal Jeff Tomczak died of pancreatic cancer caused by his firefighting service in 2024.
“As firefighters, we assume a risk when we take the job, and probably in the last 20 years, it’s really come full scale as to just how dangerous it is for our contraction of cancer, more than the normal population,” IAFF Local 302 President Jeremy Warmkessel said.
Tuerk and LVHN executives did not disclose the cost to the city of administering the test annually. According to the New York Times, the cost of each test is around $950. It will be guaranteed as part of the firefighters’ renewed union contract, which expires in 2030.
A recent clinical trial of the Galleri test failed to meet a benchmark the company set: to reduce advanced cancer diagnoses among trial participants by 20%, according to a report from the New York Times. However, according to the report, Grail executives were still encouraged by other findings of the trial, including a decrease in Stage 4 cancer diagnoses, and an increase in Stage 3.
Reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com.