Joanna Szabo  |  October 5, 2018

Category: Consumer News

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Number of 9/11 Cancer Victims Continues to Grow, 17 Years LaterIt has now been 17 years after the terrible events of 9/11—the terrorist attacks that would remain ingrained in the country’s collective memory for years to come. But memories aren’t the only effect of the 9/11 attacks plaguing the country.

Even now, more and more victims and first responders who worked at and near Ground Zero that fateful day and in the months following are being diagnosed with cancer.

On September 11, 2001, a total of 2,996 people were killed, including the 19 plane hijackers. 6,000 or more were injured. But since then, nearly 10,000 first responders and others who were near Ground Zero have been diagnosed with cancer, and more than 2,000 of these 9/11 cancer victims have now died from these diseases.

It’s projected that by the end of this year, more 9/11 cancer victims will have died than those who were killed in the attacks themselves.

Robert Reeg, a retired FDNY firefighter who was injured as a result of the collapse of the South Tower, has seen a number of those who were first responders with him and survived the attacks become 9/11 cancer victims in the aftermath. “You lose track, there’s so many of them,” Reeg, now 66, said to USA Today.

The FDNY lost 343 members in the attacks. Since then, there have been nearly 180 deaths of 9/11 cancer victims within the FDNY. In just 2017, 23 current and former NYPD 9/11 cancer victims have died as well. The FBI reports 15 9/11 cancer victims so far; only one FBI agent was reported killed in the attacks.

Indeed, the cancer rate among first responders is up to 30 percent higher than the general population, according to Dr. Michael Crane, medical director of the World Trade Center Health Program Clinical Center of Excellence at Mount Sinai.

Given the long latency period for many cancers, it is quite likely that the number of 9/11 cancer victims will continue to climb in the coming years.

Dr. Ray Basri, a volunteer firefighter and professor of medicine at New York Medical College in Valhalla, estimates that we have not even reached 15 percent of the 9/11 cancer victims we will eventually see. “I really do think we’re in the very early stages,” Dr. Basri told USA Today.

Many different people may have been exposed to these dangerous toxins and are eligible to receive money from the 9/11 victim compensation fund, including first responders, construction workers, city workers, and nearby students and residents.

Those eligible for the 9/11 victim compensation fund lived, worked, or were near Ground Zero in the aftermath of September 11, 2001—any time before May 31, 2002—and were later diagnosed with one of over 70 types of cancer.

These cancers include lung cancer, prostate cancer, melanoma, leukemia, brain cancer, and many others. Many more of these cancer types are listed on our investigation page. Diagnosis of these cancers must have been made at least four years after the exposure, except in the case of blood and bone cancers, which must have been diagnosed at least one year after the exposure.

If you or someone you love was diagnosed with cancer in the years following exposure to Ground Zero in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks, you may be eligible for compensation from the 9/11 victim compensation fund.

Navigating the complex and burdensome paperwork and strict deadlines to participate in the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund can be difficult. An experienced 9/11 Victim Fund attorney can help and ensure you get the maximum compensation available.

If you were present near Ground Zero, generally considered to be Lower Manhattan below Canal Street, between September 11, 2001 and May 31, 2002, and were diagnosed with cancer 4 years or more after exposure (or 1 year or more for blood and bone cancers), you may qualify for compensation.

Submit your information now for a free, no-obligation review of your potential 9/11 cancer fund claim.

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If you qualify, a September 11 Victim Compensation Fund attorney will contact you to discuss the details of your potential claim at no charge to you.

PLEASE NOTE: If you want to participate in this investigation, it is imperative that you reply to the law firm if they call or email you. Failing to do so may result in you not getting signed up as a client or getting you dropped as a client.

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