As a consequence of their heroic efforts, the people who save residents, pets and property from fires have a greater chance of an unwanted intruder becoming as destructive a force to their bodies as the flames and smoke they fight to help spare others.

Studies have proven that firefighters are more susceptible to lung cancer than workers in other occupations, said Dr. Nathan Bennion, a physician with CommonSpirit Health who specializes in radiation oncology at Penrose and St. Francis Cancer Centers.

“We know that exposure to smoke and chemical fumes put their lungs at a higher risk,” he said. The incidence rate is as much as 60% higher with certain lung cancers, studies show.

A study released in November of nearly 1,000 consecutive patients treated for lung cancer at Northwestern Medicine in Evanston, Ill., showed that just 35% would have qualified for screening under criteria from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and the American Cancer Society, which focus on active and former smokers ages 50 to 80. Working in a high-risk job, such as firefighting, is not part of the equation.

Such data has led to a new, free program that’s the first of its kind in El Paso County and is designed to help detect cancer nodules in the lungs earlier than usual in firefighters.

If diagnosed in a late stage, lung cancer has a poor survival rate and today is the second most-diagnosed type of cancer and the leading cause of cancer death in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society.

But when discovered early enough, it’s like a different disease, Bennion said.

“Large trials in the U.K. and the U.S. in the early 2000s determined that if we did low-dose CT scans or screening for people at high risk, we were saving lives,” he said. “Catching tumors early means less intensive or aggressive therapies and gives a better cure rate and a higher quality of life.”

Early detection also can involve as little as three non-invasive treatments or partial lung removal of the tumor or lung section with control rates over 90%, Bennion said.

CommonSpirit’s no-cost lung cancer screening program, which is just launching, will provide low-dose CT scanning to active firefighters in El Paso County who have worked in the field for 10 or more years.

The scan can be completed in seconds at Penrose Hospital Cancer Center’s longstanding screening and lung nodule clinic. It’s recommended to be completed annually.

“I have treated firefighters who were not eligible for screening but did develop lung cancer,” Bennion said. “It’s not a high number, but I have seen the case where this would have helped.”

In addition to the screening, Bennion said the clinic provides a multi-disciplinary team of medical professionals, who rally around patients who receive a positive diagnosis.

Nurse navigators guide patients through the treatment process, and a team of pathologists, radiologists, medical oncologists, pulmonologists and lung cancer surgeons collectively discuss cases and strategize on how to best handle the patient’s situation, he said.

Firefighters who participate in the screening program will “get all of this group’s expertise,” Bennion said.

Community donors contributed $50,000 to a philanthropic fund at the Penrose-St. Francis Health Foundation that makes the screening free for firefighters who are not eligible for screening under current national guidelines, according to Becky Brockman, communications manager for CommonSpirit Health’s mountain region that includes Colorado.

The approximate cost of the scan is based on the insurance provider and plan, but on average the cost is about $112 per scan, she said.

For more information, contact the Penrose Hospital Cancer Center Lung Care Program, 2222 N. Nevada Ave., by calling 719-776-6997 or emailing lungcareprogram@CommonSpirit.org.