The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) requests proposals for the writing of an expert report describing best-practice protocols and methods for biomonitoring for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in firefighters. PFAS are a family of chemicals that are present in many consumer products, especially those that are oil, stain, and/or water resistant. It has become clear over the last several decades that firefighters have chemical exposures that go beyond the fire and smoke that is most associated with risk from the job. It has been widely demonstrated that they are exposed many chemicals as part of their work, including PFAS. PFAS do not breakdown in the environment and can accumulate in the blood of people who are exposed. Most people have some measurable levels of PFAS in their blood due to exposures from water and consumer goods, but it is expected that firefighters have higher levels in their blood because they are also exposed through occupational routes: • One exposure is contact with Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) that is used on a subset of fires that are difficult to fight with water alone. High levels of Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a particular PFAS, have been measured in the blood of some firefighters that work with AFFF. • Another exposure is the personal protective equipment, called turnout gear, that firefighters wear to stay safe when fighting a fire. Many different types of PFAS are intentionally added to the gear to make it safer to wear when fighting a fire. Unfortunately, this can also result in an ongoing exposure to PFAS for firefighters. Biomonitoring is a scientific method to measure a person’s exposure to a chemical, using well-designed study, sampling, and laboratory protocols. Biomonitoring refers to analyzing samples of a person’s body fluids, usually urine or blood, for concentrations of a chemical of interest. PFAS can be measured in the serum (a component of blood). Many PFAS accumulate in the serum because the body cannot efficiently process and excrete them. Because of this, biomonitoring for these PFAS can provide a robust measure of long-term exposures. While some biomonitoring has been completed in other states, Minnesota is only now beginning to build data on the impact of occupational PFAS exposures for firefighters. This report is needed to provide evidence-based guidance and protocols for effective and actionable future biomonitoring with this highly exposed population.
