As the 17th anniversary of the horrible Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks has come and gone, the 9/11 cancer compensation fund is facing daunting statistics regarding people that were at or near Ground Zero.

The World Trade Center Health Program operating out of Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City has recently reported close to 9,800 victims of 9/11-induced cancer, according to a New York Post article.

The victims are counted among those living, attending school, or working in the southern region of Manhattan at the time, as well as first responders from the ranks of the New York City police and fire departments.

Other victims include city employees and volunteers who raced to the scene to help find potential survivors, search for remains, and help with clean up from the day of the attack to May 30, 2002.

According to the New York Post article, the number of those affected by 9/11 related illnesses keeps rising due to the massive amount of toxic dust and debris which was ingested and inhaled by those at the scene.

The tracking of cancers commonly associated with Sept. 11 really just started in 2013, but the spike in numbers doesn’t surprise the medical professionals involved. The latency period from exposure to disease diagnosis can be significant and presents many challenges for our nation’s 9/11 cancer compensation fund.

The original 9/11 cancer compensation fund or September 11 Victim Compensation Fund, as it was known then, closed in 2004. The belief at the time was that all victims had come forward to partake of necessary benefits including surviving family members in need of monetary support for funeral and living expenses.

A new version of the 9/11 cancer compensation fund was initiated in early 2011 after a noted spike in Ground Zero cancer victims.

In 2015, under the Obama administration, the fund was guaranteed through 2020. The new 9/11 cancer compensation fund totals nearly $7.3 billion in dispersion monies for health victims of the terrorist attacks.

According to the New York Post article, recent losses from this bank of heroes have been John M., 44, Ray P., 59, and John M., 49. The former two were firefighters, and the latter was a search and rescue city official.

While losses from cancer are expected to increase as a population of people age, there are noted differences in the rates of certain types of cancers among first responders and others present during the terrorist attack and clean-up efforts. There are more victims of thyroid, melanoma, and bladder, and leukemia cancers along with blood-cell diagnoses.

Those victims that live with cancerous conditions face ponderous health challenges. The article also speaks of NYPD Sergeant Tom W. who offered up almost 350 hours during and after the attacks of his time near or at the scene helping.

The pernicious assault of toxins on his system led to gastrointestinal and sinus problems, but then, seven years after 9/11, he was found to have cancer of the tongue. The cancer treatment has caused innumerable problems for Tom, according to the report, including the need for a reconstructed jaw.

The 9/11 cancer compensation fund is available for heroes like him and many others, including civilians as well as first responders, who may not know they qualify. There are up to 70 different types of cancer and other diseases that are marked as potentially 9/11-related.