Firefighters Screened for Esophageal Precancer

Chattanooga Fire makes the health and safety of our firefighters a top priority. There are many dangers that come with a career in the fire service, including a higher risk of cancer. This became all too real for our department in 2020 when Senior Firefighter Chad Crisp lost his battle with esophageal cancer. City officials, command staff and union leaders have all stressed that cancer screenings and prevention measures are critical for the members of the CFD. This week, our firefighters had the opportunity to be screened with EsoGuard, a DNA test for detection of esophageal precancer. 

Lucid is a cancer prevention company focused on the detection of Barrett’s Esophagus (BE), the only known precursor to Esophageal Adenocarcinoma (EAC). Dr. Chris Sanborn, the bariatric surgeon with Erlanger’s Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, worked with Lucid Diagnostics to provide free Barrett’s screenings to Chattanooga firefighters. The overall goal is to find pre-cancer and effectively treat it so that it never turns into cancer. We thank the team that conducted the testing at our training center and appreciate the firefighters who took part in the screenings. For anyone in the department who was unable to make it this week, there are makeup opportunities.

Senior Firefighter Crisp’s wife, Leah, stated: “If anything good can come from Chad’s cancer diagnosis, this is it- early detection. Thank you to the CFD and Local 820 for pushing forward to make testing available and possibly save someone’s life in the process.”