You feel invincible as a firefighter. You want to tear your shirt open and show a big letter “S” on your chest. This article is pointed at the younger members of the fire service. The older members of the fire service have been through it.

As a member of the fire service, I undergo two medical monitoring exams annually. One is with my volunteer fire department, where I have been active for more than 40 years. The second is now, as a retired firefighter with the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) and as part of the response team to the World Trade Center (WTC) attack. As required, I do a WTC medical once a year, as well. I space each of these exams six months apart. That is just my preference.

I considered retirement after almost 30 years in the FDNY, and often heard from retired members throughout my career to “get a complete checkup, even though you feel fine.” So, with that repeated advice running through my head, I went to every doctor who was an “ologist” in their medical field. I had pretty good medical insurance, and all it took was a $20 co-pay for each visit. Before my retirement, I also completed my Active Firefighter Annual Medical Exam.

The Importance of Annual Medical Exams

Throughout my career, I have had some issues. I was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat, AFIB (atrial fibrillation), which shows up in my family history with strokes on my paternal side. This was fixed with a heart ablation surgery. Then nodules were found in my left lung from WTC dust. They remain minuscule in size but are being continuously monitored. Sinus cavity surgery was performed in 2015 due to severe irritations, and polyps attributed to WTC dust were removed.

Now, in my early 60s, just before I was set to retire, I took my last Active Firefighter Annual Medical exam. It was all normal, marked by good blood pressure and a good heart rate (since my ablation surgery, I walk four miles a day on a treadmill at work or in the neighborhood on my days off). The medical staff advised AFIB is not covered as a job-related illness. But, to be honest, my thought on this was, “So going from zero to one hundred in a matter of seconds when the tones drop for decades has nothing to do with it?”

The only abnormality detected was a mid-level PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) of 4.0, which is on the upper end of the scale and not earth-shattering. However, I was told to monitor it through retirement. I put it on the back burner of my to-do list.

Taking the Next Steps

Upon retirement, I did what almost every retiree does, without worrying about vacation schedules, shift swaps, and so on. I traveled extensively in the first year after leaving the FDNY. In doing so, my medical exams fell by the wayside – until I needed to complete my volunteer annual medical exam. So I went in for what I thought would be a regular exam. The results were again normal, for the most part, and within the proper ranges.

Again, the only abnormality was my PSA level. It increased by 1.5 points in one year, rising from 4.0 to 5.5. I went back to the urologist I saw before retiring. He is exceptional in my book, with a good bedside manner. He was caring, listened intently, and answered all my questions in detail. He ordered a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of my prostate. He advised me that it is considered a rapid increase and “we should see what’s going on.”

The MRI showed no abnormalities. However, the 1.5-point increase concerned him, so he advised a biopsy to ensure nothing was hiding in there. He asked about any family history, to which I replied yes – my firefighter family. I know too many of my colleagues, all company members, who came down with prostate cancer. Firefighters have a 1.21 percent higher incidence of getting prostate cancer than the general population. He concurred.

The Biopsy Experience

The doctor took 12 biopsy samples, which were done in his office as an outpatient procedure. I thought it sounded like a staple gun being triggered every time he took a sample. So, to control my anxiety and get through the procedure, I counted the staple sounds till I got to 12. I even got his nurse to count with me. And me being me, I jokingly miscounted on purpose to see if she was paying attention. She giggled and said, “You missed one,” and we chuckled. The procedure was all over in about 15 minutes. Afterwards, during discharge, I was advised that for a couple of weeks there would be blood in my urine, stool, and semen.

The blood cleared in my urine and stool relatively quickly, and I had some minor soreness (my prostate after biopsy felt like it was the size of an NCAA football!) with frequent urination, but all was gone within several days. The only holdout was my semen – there was still some pink color. My partner said, “You’re still bleeding,” after some intimacy. I touched base with, and reached out to, some of the guys I know who were diagnosed with prostate cancer during this time of waiting and adjusting. They were all uplifting conversations, and they reviewed options with me that they had already gone through. I completed both bottles of antibiotics prescribed after the procedure to prevent infection.

Leaning on the Firefighter Family

If you experience any medical issues, seek out your confidants. It’s a tremendous help. Lean into the firefighting family. It felt like having an elephant in the room for the two weeks of waiting for the biopsy results.

I had just retired. I could deal with controlling things on the fireground and have done so for a long time, but this was different. There was restless sleep at night; I couldn’t shut down my brain with the constant thoughts of, “What are my options?” I am tired of seeing my friends and colleagues die and going to the constant rounds of funerals. Now me? That’s the mind game of the waiting period, and it wears on you whether you still have an “S” on your shirt or not.

I have been blessed with my partner, who is a psychologist. She has come to learn about the inner workings of the fire service through me. She is my main support structure. She has often offered to help any colleagues who have medical or mental health or addiction issues. I even spoke with my Chief, Chief Frank Leeb – whom many of you know I used to drive. I let him in on what was going on. He is another pillar of support who was essential in grounding me and telling me, “You got this.”

The Good News

After a full month had passed in July, my urologist gave me the testing result. It all turned out to be a false positive! (Which means that the biopsies showed no concerns.) After giving me the result, he said, “See ya in six months, and in your 60s, you’re becoming an old guy,” while chuckling and smiling at me. I caught up quickly on the missed sleep and started attending fire conventions to stay connected.

Some takeaways for you to consider:

  • Listen to your body. If something doesn’t go away in two weeks or feels worse, get it checked. You have only one body; take care of it
  • Keep up with your Annual Firefighter Exams – be your own advocate
  • Seek out people who have gone through what you are going through. Lean into your firefighting family
  • If your department doesn’t have an Annual Medical Exam program, fight to get it.
  • I abused my body over decades as a firefighter; I would tell my younger self to be better with my body and mind. There are people who love you, and they depend on you being there – even after the firefighting

Firefighter Joe Wisz (aka, Driver Joe) has served with distinction in both career and volunteer roles, including his service with the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) and his hometown department, the East Farmingdale Fire Department. With decades of experience responding to emergencies, he has been deployed to some of the most significant incidents in recent history, including the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, Hurricane Katrina, Superstorm Sandy, and major wildfires in the western United States. In addition to his operational experience, Joe served as Chief of the East Farmingdale Fire Department and was the inaugural Captain of its Technical Rescue Team following its formation.