Firefighter Cancer Awareness Month: Athena’s Story of Advocacy
January 8, 2025
Found in BC Cancer - Vancouver
Cancer is the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths among firefighters. To mark Firefighter Cancer Awareness Month, Athena Calogeros, a training captain with West Vancouver Fire & Rescue and thyroid cancer survivor, speaks out about early detection, prevention and the need to advocate for the people who risk their lives to keep us safe.
“When I was young, I was told that women can’t be firefighters,” says Athena Calogeros. As one of five women — out of 100 members in the West Vancouver fire department — she’s not only proving they can, she’s breaking down barriers for all firefighters who are at an increased risk of cancer due to workplace exposure to toxic substances and hazardous chemicals.
“My story isn’t really about survival, it’s about advocating for yourself,” says Athena, which is what she did in 2019 when she first noticed “a feeling like there was something in my throat.”
An ultrasound uncovered nodules in her thyroid gland. Often found to be benign, they weren’t immediately a cause for concern, she says. Still, Athena pushed for further testing and three biopsies and a year and half later she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
After surgery, Athena’s doctor told her that because they caught the cancer early, due to her diligence in getting diagnostics, she wouldn’t require radiation or further treatment. A few months later, she happily returned to work but now in addition to fighting fire she had to fight to prove her thyroid cancer was job-related to be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits.
“At the time my cancer wasn’t recognized as an occupational disease,” she says — unlike leukemia, bladder, colorectal, kidney, testicular, prostate, breast and other cancers, including lung cancer in non-smokers, which were all covered.
As a field response team volunteer with North Shore Rescue, Athena is on the end of the line for helicopter hoist and fixed-line rescues.
“I submitted a WorkSafe claim even though I knew it was unlikely to be successful because I wanted to advocate for thyroid cancer to be recognized. It was denied. At the time, the BC Professional Fire Fighters Association (BCPFFA) was lobbying the provincial government to include thyroid cancer among the recognized occupational cancers. My motivation was to ensure that, if thyroid cancer is recognized as an occupational disease, it would lead to improved prevention measures and better support for those diagnosed with this cancer in the future.”
Athena requested a review but it was also denied. However, two days later the provincial government legislated thyroid and pancreatic cancer as occupational diseases for firefighters. Since her cancer was not retroactively covered, she still had to appeal the review.
“It was then found that my cancer was caused by the job. Moving forward, for all firefighters who are diagnosed with thyroid cancer it will be assumed it was caused by the job. The precedent has been set. They’re not going to have to battle, or say ‘That’s not fair,’ like I did.”
Adding to the list of diseases that firefighters are at an increased risk of developing is important as it increases awareness among health practitioners and shines a light on the need for increased screening, as well as the importance of workplace protection and decontamination protocol, says Athena.
“For so long we were concerned with our inhalation risk, and we overlooked absorption. It’s important to avoid skin contact and protect our entire bodies from smoke and toxic chemicals.”
Advocating on behalf of her colleagues is incredibly impactful, due to the close-knit community of most fire departments, says Athena, whose husband is also a firefighter.
“The shift work makes it a different work environment than most people experience. When you spend that much time together you really get to know your co-workers. Every firefighter I know loves their job. It’s a career very few people move on from, so you know people from before they meet their partner to when their kids go off to university.”
Having formed these life-long relationships with her fellow firefighters, Athena is grateful to have played a part in ensuring that if any of them are diagnosed with cancer, they can focus on recovery, knowing their families are well-supported.
Learn more about how B.C. firefighters are giving back to increase access to cancer research and care across the province.
