By Suzette Martinez Standring
(Photo of Jeff Byrne in 2022)
Retired Fire Captain Jeff Byrne, age 71, is in remission from prostate cancer, two and a half years after his diagnosis on December 23, 2021. Now he’s active with other firefighters about early cancer detection, and he marvels at how helpful group therapy was, despite his initial resistance.
“I'd never been in anything like that. That’s firemen, we don’t do those things, you know.”
Unexpected good came from beating cancer; a deeper understanding about himself, stronger bonds, appreciation of renewed health, and a new purpose to help others. A San Francisco native, Jeff lives in Marin, California with his wife Jeanine, and they have three adult children, and two grandchildren.
Working with the San Francisco Fire Department, he rarely thought about the risks of cancer. Nowadays, there is greater awareness of causes, such as PFAS, which are cancer causing chemicals in fire gear, toxins released from actual fires, and the need for diesel exhaust extractors to remove vehicle fumes in firehouses.
When Jeff reflects back, he believes Firefighting foam used in fires caused by flammable liquids was another cancer exposure. According to Jeff, vehicles, for example, have a magnesium engine block and water only accelerates a fire. Extinguishing a car fire requires firefighting foam, which contain PFAS.
He said, “It could be the Triple F foam, which we used all the time. We had drills with it, and it was fun to work with because it was like this wet snow, and you could fill up a room. We'd be walking in it and playing in it, and we had no idea.
“You had to do foam drills a certain day, every month, so everybody did them.
“Anyway, it could be one of hundreds of things that contributed to this huge outbreak that everybody's getting cancer now.”
But there was little knowledge when he joined the fire department in 1978. Jeff came with great enthusiasm for the job, working mainly at Station 7 (San Francisco’s Mission District), Station 21 (Hayes Valley), and Station 5 (The Fillmore). After 25 years as a firefighter, he later retired as a captain in 2011, after a total of 32 years.
“I had a great career. I was at busy stations and loved it.”
He never had health issues until his cancer appeared in 2021. It began when his doctor, Scott Rodriguez, M.D. recommended a PSA test, which measures the amount of prostate-specific antigens in a man’s blood for prostate cancer. Jeff’s PSA warranted more tests and treatment.
“It’s the first PSA test I ever had, and it was 5.8. He opened the door, or I never would have gotten the test. I found out December 23 and I didn’t want to tell anybody because it was Christmas so I waited until the new year. It was difficult. Things changed so radically for me.”
One go-to resource was the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation.
Jeff explained, “All the people in The Foundation are ex-firefighters and everybody just naturally calls them if they get any kind of cancer. They’re there to help, so it's a natural progression to to talk to them because they have navigators in in the Foundation.”
The Foundation suggested a second opinion, and recommended he transfer his treatments from Marin to UCSF Health in San Francisco, one of the top 10 hospitals in the U.S.
“I was a little reluctant just because everything was cooking and rolling already in Marin. But I'm so glad I went to UCSF because they're like the cutting edge, a center of excellence.”
Right away, he was able to get a PSMA Pet scan, which can pinpoint tumors, and determine if cancer has metastasized anywhere outside of the prostate, and he recalled, “The Foundation recommended that I get a PMSA Pet Scan. At time I had to pay $9,000, but the test wasn’t even available at the hospitals in Marin.”
Nowadays the test is covered under insurance.
Jeff did a lot of personal research over various treatment options. Through UCSF Health, he chose High Dose Rate Brachytherapy (HDR) to treat his prostate cancer.
The treatment was performed while he was under anesthesia and according to Jeff, a robotic mechanism inserts 14 needle-like tubes through the perineum into the prostate, which load the radium seeds, and sets the treatment rate for a certain amount of time.
He said, “And so this machine's going, it's pushing seeds in and out of those 14 tubes. That takes about a half hour. Then they pull the needles out, and they send you home. It didn’t hurt because you’re under and the robot does its thing.”
He had two treatments beginning in July 2022, two weeks apart, and then his PSA levels were carefully monitored ever since. One day the nurse practitioner told him his PSA level was .2 and “there was no evidence of disease” and today, Jeff openly advocates for early cancer detection. He has a list of ten firefighters with cancer for whom he helps and stays in contact.
“I’ll say to other firefighters, ‘What’s your PSA?’ ‘Did you get your PSA checked?’”
But what surprises Jeff is the effect of group therapy on firefighters going through cancer..
The San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation made the suggestion he participate with three other firefighters in group sessions. At first he balked, but after “two days to think about it,” he finally agreed.
The Foundation set up and paid for ten sessions, each one for 1.5 hours, held on Zoom and led by two female therapists on Mondays. At his request, he participated with other firefighters he knew and liked.
Before each session, a discussion/topic prompt would be sent out in advance. The sessions involved meditation and relaxation. Jeff said the time flew by.
He recalls one guided imagery exercise where everyone was asked to think of something they no longer wanted to carry.
Jeff recalls the therapist saying, “Think of a situation you didn't handle well, or something you want to get rid of. Now you’re at a river, a beautiful river, and you're holding this situation like a stone in your hand, and you want to get rid of it. Put it in the river and let it float away.”
Afterwards the conversations felt deep and bonding.
Jeff remembers one firefighter shared that his stone was massive and he hurled it into the river. Everyone carries burdens, disappointments, grudges, and it was liberating to offload a longtime weight. Always, the group was supportive and reassuring.
Jeff recalled sharing criticism he carried about himself.
He said, “Sometimes we have perceptions of ourselves that aren't really accurate or things we doubt about ourselves. The guys were saying, ‘Jeff, you don't do that. You’ve never done that. You know you don’t, right?’”
The sessions ended, but tight friendships remain, as well as the kind of support that one needs when going through some of life’s hardest trials.
Jeff said, “It’s pretty awesome in that regard. It’s like I’m in a whole new world. I’m so lucky.”
Blogger Photo: Suzette Martinez Standring
DO YOU HAVE A FIREFIGHTER RELATED CANCER STORY?
Please contact Suzette Standring (suzette@firefightersvscancer.org) if you, as a firefighter or family member, have a story to share.
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