The Forgotten

Same Fires,
Different Laws

Firefighting is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer — the same category as asbestos. Female firefighters make up 9% of the fire service. They run into the same fires, breathe the same smoke, and carry the same toxic burden. But the laws written to protect them were built around male biology.

Presumptive cancer coverage laws exist in most U.S. states. They establish a legal presumption that certain cancers developed by firefighters were caused by their work — meaning they don't have to prove it individually, which would be nearly impossible. But the cancers on most states' presumptive lists were determined using research built almost entirely on male cohorts.

The result: female firefighters who develop cancers most likely to affect their biology — reproductive, gynecological, hormonal — are often not covered. In Texas, there are 11 cancers on the presumptive list. Not one is reproductive or gynecological.

The Numbers

9%
Of the U.S. fire service is female — yet presumptive cancer law research was built almost entirely on male cohorts
11
Cancers on Texas's presumptive coverage list — zero are reproductive or gynecological
Group 1
IARC classification for firefighting — the highest carcinogen category, shared with asbestos
HB 1639
Texas law passed June 2025 mandating the first state study of female firefighter cancer — results released September 1, 2026

The Policy Gap

Presumptive cancer laws were a hard-won victory for the firefighting community. The principle is simple: if you develop one of these cancers after years of fighting fires, the law presumes your work caused it. You don't have to prove causation in a court or to an insurance company. The presumption is yours.

But that presumption was built on data from male firefighters. Studies conducted over decades tracked the cancers that appeared in male cohorts — bladder cancer, kidney cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The lists reflect what was studied, not what is true.

What Female Firefighters Face

  • Breast cancer — one of the most common cancers in female firefighters — is not on Texas's presumptive list
  • Cervical, ovarian, uterine, and other gynecological cancers are not covered
  • When a claim is denied, firefighters face a choice: fight the denial while managing a cancer diagnosis, or let it go
  • Kim Phillips, a Houston firefighter and breast cancer survivor, chose not to fight — she didn't have the energy for both battles at once
  • Lt. Suzanne LaFollette fought her denied claim for years — and eventually won — but the fight nearly cost her separately from the cancer

What Needs to Change

  • State presumptive cancer lists must be updated to include cancers affecting female biology
  • Research funding must be directed toward female firefighter cancer studies
  • Workers' compensation systems must be reformed to reduce the burden on individual claimants
  • The 2027 Texas legislative session is an opportunity to expand the presumptive list — the data from HB 1639 is now on the record

Castaway Warriors documents the human cost of this gap through Brotherhood, Rewritten — a feature documentary following three female firefighters at the center of this fight. The film is in production.

What You Can Do

This Fight Is Winnable

The HB 1639 study results are on the record. The 2027 Texas legislative session is open. The data exists. What is needed now is the political will — and the public awareness — to act.

Support Brotherhood, Rewritten Watch the Teaser