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Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health

Get More Information

Find NIOSH products and get answers to workplace 

safety and health questions:

1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636)

TTY: 1-888-232-6348

CDC/NIOSH INFO: cdc.gov/info | cdc.gov/niosh

Monthly NIOSH eNews: cdc.gov/niosh/eNews

DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2021-115

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHPUB2021115

May 2021

Photo by ©Matt277/Getty Images

Learn more about the NFR at 

www.cdc.gov/NFR

If you have questions, please 

contact NFRegistry@cdc.gov
What is the National 

Firefighter Registry?

The National Firefighter Registry (NFR) is a voluntary 

registry of firefighters that is designed to help us better 

understand cancer in the U.S. fire service.

Congress mandated the NFR’s creation through the 

Firefighter Cancer Registry Act of 2018. The National 

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) 

is leading this effort with input from the scientific and 

firefighting communities.

“Our goal is to better 

understand the link 

between workplace 

exposures and cancer 

among firefighters.”

How will the NFR 

benefit firefighters?

Past studies show that firefighters have increased rates 

of certain cancers. However, these studies have not 

determined:

• Cancer rates among volunteer, female, or minority 

firefighters; or among sub-specialties, such as fire 

instructors

• How different exposures affect cancer rates

• If certain groups of firefighters have higher rates 

of cancer based on types and level of exposure, 

geography, sex, or other traits

• If certain protective measures are associated with 

reduced rates of cancer

Our ultimate goal is to identify ways to reduce cancer 

rates among firefighters.

When will NFR 

registration begin?

We plan to begin registration in 2022. When more 

details on registration are available we will share them 

widely through firefighter channels, and update our 

materials.

What else should I know 

about the NFR?

• Participation in the NFR is voluntary.

• Registration will take place through a secure web 

portal and will take around 30 minutes.

• Your personal information will be kept confidential 

and will not be shared without your permission.

• The NFR is a long-term project that will include 

important follow-up questionnaires.

• Continued participation in the NFR could help 

firefighters. The more we know about cancer in the 

fire service, the more we can do to prevent it.

Firefighters do not need to have 

cancer or any other health condition 

to participate in the NFR.

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Who will be included in 

the NFR?

The NFR will be open to all U.S. firefighters regardless 

of whether they have a previous cancer diagnosis. We 

encourage all firefighters to participate in the NFR, 

including:

• Active, former, and retired firefighters

• Career, paid-on-call, and volunteer firefighters

• Structural firefighters

• Wildland firefighters

• Industrial firefighters

• Military firefighters

• Instructors

• Fire investigators

• Other fire service members

Having many types of firefighters 

in the NFR is crucial to examining 

relationships between firefighting 

activities and cancer.

More information

For more information, please visit 

www.cdc.gov/NFR, where you can 

sign up for the NFR newsletter 

for updates. If you have any 

questions, please email us at 

NFRegistry@cdc.gov.

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