Can I Sue If I Think Firefighting Foam Gave Me Cancer?

by Jeffrey Nadrich Managing Partner, Nadrich & Cohen, LLP

Yes, you can file a lawsuit if you think firefighting foam gave you cancer.

Product liability lawsuits typically involve one or more of the following types of claims: defective design, manufacturing defect and failure to warn.

Defective design claims involve products that are dangerous by design. Manufacturing defect claims involve products that are designed safely, but a fault in the manufacturing process makes them dangerous. Failure to warn claims involve a company’s failure to warn about the dangers their product can cause, or failure to provide proper instructions regarding use of the product.

Firefighting foam cancer lawsuits can involve claims of failure to warn and defective design.

Defective Design

Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) is a firefighting foam which has been used for over 50 years. AFFF contains the chemicals perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). These chemicals are known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

PFAS are highly persistent in the human body. They stay in the body and their levels build up in the body the more one is exposed to them. A scientific review published in October 2019 found that the bodies of firefighters who used firefighting foams containing PFAS contained “unacceptably high” levels of PFAS, and a February 2020 study found that female firefighters had higher levels of PFAS in their bodies than did office workers.

A 2013 study found that PFOA “may be associated with testicular, kidney, prostate, and ovarian cancers and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.” The CDC states that PFAS may “increase the risk of some cancers.” The World Health Organization has designated PFOA as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs has warned that AFFF firefighting foam is linked to an increased risk of breast cancer, prostate cancer, kidney cancer, testicular cancer and pancreatic cancer.

PFAS are not unintended byproducts of a fault in the AFFF manufacturing process. Therefore the presence of PFAS in AFFF is not cause for a manufacturing defect claim. Rather, it is cause for a defective design claim.

AFFF contains PFAS, which many sources suggest may be carcinogenic. AFFF contains PFAS by design, and the PFAS makes AFFF dangerous. Thus, AFFF is a product which is defective and dangerous by design since it contains PFAS by design.

Failure To Warn

Over 100 AFFF lawsuits in the United States, lawsuits surrounding the contamination of groundwater and drinking water supplies by AFFF, have been consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (MDL). AFFF manufacturers are also facing numerous other lawsuits not involving water contamination.

The 3M Company is currently facing multiple class action lawsuits which allege that 3M and other defendants knew that AFFF exposure could increase one’s risk of cancer yet continued to market the products without warning consumers about this risk. National Foam, Buckeye Fire Equipment, Chemguard, Tyco Fire Products, Kidde-Fenwal, Inc., E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company and The Chemours Company are also facing lawsuits claiming they continued to manufacture firefighting foam despite knowing about the cancer risks associated with the product. New Jersey’s Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said that firefighting foam manufacturers “knew full well the health and environmental risks associated with this foam, and yet they sold it to New Jersey’s firefighters anyway.”

Who Is At Risk For AFFF-Related Cancer?

Members of the military, firefighters, AFFF manufacturers, chemical plant workers and airport workers are at a particularly high risk for AFFF exposure.

People who live in areas where AFFF is regularly used are also at risk for AFFF exposure through groundwater or drinking water contamination.

How Is The Government Dealing With AFFF?

Congress passed the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act in 2018. This act allowed aircraft manufacturers and airports to opt out of foams containing PFAS by 2021.

The Department of Defense is conducting research attempting to find a safer alternative to AFFF. The Environmental Protection Agency is currently enacting a PFAS Action Plan to protect the public from PFAS.

Have PFAS Been Banned Anywhere?

Washington State banned PFAS in food packaging in 2018. The state also banned the sale of firefighting foam that contains PFAS.

The state of New York now mandates that wrappers and food service containers that the state purchases be free of added PFAS.

Maine has banned PFAS in food packaging, and the cities of Berkeley and San Francisco have passed similar food packaging laws. Colorado has banned the sale of firefighting foam which contains PFAS.

Many states are adopting new drinking water standards to protect their residents from drinking water contaminated by PFAS.

About The Author

Jeffrey Nadrich is the managing partner of Nadrich & Cohen, LLP, a California personal injury law firm with offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Fresno, Modesto, Tracy and Palm Desert. The firm has been handling product liability cases since 1990 and has recovered over $350,000,000 on behalf of its clients in that time. For more information on firefighting foam cancer lawsuits, visit https://www.personalinjurylawcal.com/firefighting-foam-lawyers/