First responders, particularly firefighters, are at a higher risk of getting cancer because of what they can be exposed to while doing their jobs.
Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center has a special program that helps them navigate treatment. So far, 21 first responders have gone through the program since it started less than two years ago.
Brooke Westerhoff has a lot of titles to list. She is a firefighter and EMT with Putnam County Fire Rescue, and a newlywed. Westerhoff is also a cancer survivor.
“It is a second chance at life because I look at everything differently now,” Westerhoff said.
Westerhoff has been cancer-free for 10 months now.
She was diagnosed with Stage 3 Hodgkins Lymphoma in July 2021 while planning her wedding.