Dalhousie Team Developing Carcinogen Test For Firefighters
HALIFAX — Growing up on P.E.I., Crystal Sweeney quickly learned that people were concerned about the pesticides used for farming on the island. That concern for how environmental toxins affect the human body has led the Dalhousie University post-doctoral researcher to search out a method for firefighters to monitor potential exposure to cancer-causing substances.
“P.E.I. has a potato monoculture, and a lot of P.E.I. residents, even members of my family, were very concerned about the possibility of some of the pesticide exposures possibly contributing to some of the cancer rates,” Sweeney said in an interview with Huddle.
“So, I’ve always had this interest in environmental exposures. But I’m actually very concerned about firefighter exposures to carcinogens in their line of duty because, despite their sophisticated protective equipment, they still seem to be experiencing these exposures.”
Sweeney, who completed a Ph.D. focusing on analytical toxicology, is now part of Dalhousie University’s Lab2Market program. It’s a program the university started three years ago to help researchers commercialize their ideas.
Dalhousie just began two 16-week Lab2market cohorts. In total, 35 teams are a part of this year’s program, representing 21 universities across Canada (six are from Atlantic Canada). Lab2Market gives these academic researchers mentoring in business and entrepreneurship. They can also receive $15,000 of funding.
In the last three years, Lab2Market has led to the creation of 30 companies.
Sweeney, who is doing her research project with John Frampton, is trying to develop a simple rapid test kit for firefighters. In the line of duty, firefighters sweat a lot. Sweeney has theorized that, if the firefighter has been exposed to cancer-causing toxins, traces of it could be found in perspiration.
“I’ve read a number of articles that show that some contaminants are excreted in sweat, and in some cases, they’re excreted in sweat in higher concentrations,” says Sweeney. “So it could mean there’s a preferential excretion route, and if that’s true, we might be able to harness that.”
“Just because they are exposed to these compounds, doesn’t necessarily mean cancer will develop. But we could use these contaminants as a marker or an indicator of exposure over time.”
If Sweeney and her team can make headway with their research, it could be a breakthrough for the health of firefighters. A study by the National Institute of Health and Safety has shown firefighters are nine percent more likely to develop cancer than the general population, and 14 percent more likely to die from it.
“Cancer is the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths in the fire service, which is interesting considering how dangerous the profession is from an acute injury standpoint,” said Sweeney.
The research into developing a rapid test is still in the early stages. The next step is for Sweeney to interview firefighters.
“What Lab2Market allows us to do, as researchers, is to get out of the lab and speak directly to the people who are impacted by these innovations,” she said. “By speaking directly with firefighters, I’m learning what they need, what they want, and how we can incorporate that into their already extensive safety protocols.”
Sweeney is hopeful that a rapid test could help firefighters prevent cancer from developing. It could also give more insight into what safety protocols and equipment could use improvement.
“It could tell us more about the efficacy of the PPE. It could also tell us if protocols for wearing PPE are being followed. It might even be able to tell us where PPE fails. And then it can also give a firefighter an idea about some of these invisible exposures and give them more control.”
Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].