Jumpline magazine February 2025 - Flipbook - Page 21
Claudine Buzzo
Bene昀椀ts Of昀椀cer
Sylvester Cancer Center Initiative
21
They also implemented the wipes that they gave us.
We’re wiping our necks down. We’re wiping, if we
can’t run to get to the shower, at least we’re getting
that off of us as quickly as we can,” Buzzo said.
Hello brothers and sisters. The following article is
very personal, but I felt the need to share. The Fire-
昀椀ghter Cancer Initiative at the University of Miami’s Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
reached out to me to share my cancer journey.
I agreed because I wanted to bring awareness
to early detection! Local 1403 was able to secure
In addition, 昀椀re昀椀ghters now get regular health screenings.
scans from neck to groin at our physicals and I cannot stress
enough how important it is to take advantage of this bene昀椀t. As
I see it, 75% of our members who have received a cancer diagnosis did so as a result of these scans. Please, be proactive as
you are your best advocate.
“Early detection is truly key and can help reduce the amount of
treatment that you need and improve your long-term outcome,”
Kesmodel said.
An interview with Claudine Buzzo, Miami-Dade Fire昀椀ghter and
Cancer Survivor
“We always tell them, ‘Hey, Sylvester has this program.’ The fact
that they go around every single day to different departments
and they put on these trainings, and they put out all this information is completely crucial for every 昀椀re昀椀ghter,” Buzzo said.
In August 2024, the 53-year-old was diagnosed with two types of
breast cancer. She was being treated for intraductal carcinoma
in situ when a secondary tumor was found and removed during
surgery. Susan Kesmodel, M.D., a breast surgical oncologist at
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University
of Miami Health System, who conducted her lumpectomy, says
studies show 昀椀re昀椀ghters face a higher risk of developing cancer.
Buzzo now guides her fellow 昀椀re昀椀ghters about their increased
cancer risk.
“This is related to occupational exposure, so particularly combustible substances creating toxic fumes, and gases, and particulates. When it was realized that there was elevated risk in
昀椀re昀椀ghters, a multidisciplinary team started to look at factors
that increased risk, that were associated with risk, and this is
something that the Fire昀椀ghter Cancer Initiative is working on,”
Kesmodel said.
The Fire昀椀ghter Cancer Initiative marks its 10-year anniversary this year. Researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer
Center have been working with these 昀椀rst responders to help
them better understand their risk, while implementing protective
measures.
bit.ly/ClaudineFCI
“They implemented the green buckets. After a 昀椀re, we’re going
to take the bucket, 昀椀ll it up with the solution, and we’re going to
scrub our gear down to get all of those toxins off of our gear.
The department also implemented the “shower within the hour”.
March 2025 | JUMPLINE Magazine
