Kidney Cancer

Kidney Cancer Heightened by Toxins Released on 9/11

The collapse of the World Trade Center’s twin towers and several adjacent buildings released an unknown number of contaminants and carcinogens into the air. Materials and compounds never intended to burn were incinerated and reduced to fumes, smoke, vapors, particles, and ash. Researchers who studied the toxins released into the air on 9/11 have identified more than 70 different deadly carcinogens, many of which survivors and responders breathed in, and that lingered for eight months during clean-up and removal efforts. 

As workers were encouraged to return to Lower Manhattan in the weeks and months after 9/11, most were unaware of the dangers that lingered. Those toxins have been linked to 69 different cancers among survivors and responders, including kidney cancer.

Kidney Cancer Affecting More Than 1.1K Survivors, Responders of 9/11

It took researchers until 2013 to quantify and link high levels of inhaled particulate matter by first responders at the World Trade Center sites to kidney damage. Since this report, kidney cancer has increased nearly seven-fold – from 160 in 2014 to 1,102 in March 2022. 

Like many cancers, a clear origin and cause of kidney cancer is unknown. Kidney cancer begins in the renal cells that line the tubes within your kidney. As abnormal cells mutate, tumors can emerge over time and be slow growing. The amount of toxic air that survivors and responders were exposed to during and after 9/11 cannot be overlooked considering the continual growth kidney cancer is revealing among WTCHP enrollees.

Characteristics of Kidney Cancer

Kidney cancer can be difficult to detect through symptoms alone, especially in the earlier stages of the disease. It often gets diagnosed through other testing, exams, and scans. However, as the disease progress, the following symptoms might become noticeable: 

• Persistent lower back pain
• Blood in the urine (hematuria) 
• Weight loss
• Fatigue
• Intermittent fever
• Elevated blood pressure
• Anemia – drop in number of red blood cells

Because it can take months, years, or even decades for cancer to grow, it is important for 9/11 survivors and responders to be aware that a diagnosis years later can be a result of their exposure, and they have the right to seek full and fair compensation.

Wonderful people. Barasch & McGarry did a great job securing my 911 cancer award.

M.S.
Survivor

Medical Care and Compensation for sufferers of Kidney Cancer

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 was approved legislation that established an initial list of conditions covered by the two 9/11 benefit programs the act created. These programs are The World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP), which provides free nationwide medical care, and the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) which disburses monetary compensation to those with conditions the WTC Health Program certifies. To date 69 cancers including kidney cancer are part of the list of conditions, some of which have been added years later when medical evidence became undeniable. 

In 2019, after dozens of trips down to Washington, D.C. to lobby Congress, our firm and many other 9/11 advocates aided in the full funding and permanent extension of the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund. Passage of the Never Forget the Heroes Act essentially ensures funds are available to compensate all who are currently sick or get sick in the future.

Deadline Extended to Register for Compensation

Deadlines to register VCF claims are approaching. If you or anyone you know had cancer or lost a family member as a result on 9/11, reach out to us to register for compensation quickly.

If you were exposed to the toxic air on 9/11 or in the eight months that followed but have not had your medical condition linked to 9/11, you also still have time to apply for significant compensation. The deadline to apply to the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) is two years from the date that your cancer has been certified by the WTC Health Program. The two-year period to register doesn’t start on the day of diagnosis. Rather, it starts only when a victim is made aware their condition was linked to exposure to the WTC toxins.

For those who died from their WTC-linked condition, the two-year period for their family to register starts on the day of the death of the WTC victim.

Many people have tried to complete the VCF application on their own, only to learn that it requires answers to hundreds of questions and many documents to download. It would be our pleasure to help you complete the process to ensure that you receive the compensation to which you are entitled. Please contact us for a free consultation.