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What Is AFFF and Who Was Exposed?
Aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) is a fire suppressant used to extinguish Class B fires involving flammable liquids — petroleum, aviation fuel, and other hydrocarbons. AFFF creates a film over burning liquids that cuts off the oxygen supply and halts combustion. The U.S. military has required AFFF use at air stations and airfields since the 1970s, and civilian airports and industrial facilities have used it widely as well. Traditional AFFF formulations — used from the 1970s through the early 2000s — were manufactured using PFOS-based or PFOA-based PFAS chemistry. AFFF concentrate typically contains 0.1% to 1% PFAS by weight, and when diluted for application it still delivers PFAS concentrations far above any drinking water threshold. Firefighters who applied AFFF during training exercises and real emergency responses absorbed PFAS through skin contact, inhalation of foam aerosol, and accidental ingestion.
Why AFFF Firefighter PFAS Exposure Is So Serious
Studies of AFFF-exposed firefighters consistently find PFAS blood concentrations many times higher than the general population. A National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) study found that military firefighters had PFOS concentrations averaging 7 to 10 times higher than civilian controls. The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) has recognized PFAS as a major occupational health threat. Studies comparing firefighter cancer rates to the general population have found elevated rates of kidney cancer, testicular cancer, bladder cancer, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma — all cancers with established PFAS epidemiological associations. The combination of high PFAS dose from direct AFFF contact and additional exposure from contaminated base drinking water creates a compounding exposure profile that strongly supports individual causation arguments.
MDL 2873 — AFFF Firefighter Claim Status
MDL 2873 consolidates both water contamination claims and AFFF occupational exposure claims. Military firefighters, civilian airport firefighters, and industrial firefighters who developed PFAS-linked cancers after direct AFFF occupational exposure have individual personal injury claims that proceed alongside residential water contamination claims. The defendants in AFFF occupational exposure claims include 3M (manufacturer of PFOS-based AFFF), Tyco Fire Products, Chemguard, Buckeye Fire Equipment, National Foam, Angus Fire, and other AFFF manufacturers. As of February 2026, over 15,000 cases are pending in MDL 2873, a significant portion of which involve AFFF occupational exposure. Bellwether trial selections in 2026 include AFFF occupational exposure cases alongside residential water contamination cases.
What Evidence Do AFFF Firefighter Claimants Need?
AFFF occupational exposure claims require documentation of: (1) Employment as a firefighter at a military installation, civilian airport, or industrial facility where AFFF was used; (2) Participation in AFFF application or AFFF training exercises; (3) A qualifying cancer or disease diagnosis — kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid cancer, thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, or bladder cancer; (4) Medical records establishing the diagnosis and treatment history. Employment records, military service records, FAA airport employment records, or fire department employment and training records can establish the occupational exposure. PFAS blood test results, if available, provide strong corroborating evidence of elevated PFAS bioaccumulation. An attorney can help obtain military records and occupational records through Freedom of Information Act requests and standard discovery.
AFFF Turnout Gear — A Separate and Emerging Exposure Pathway
Distinct from AFFF liquid exposure, firefighter turnout gear (protective clothing) has long been treated with PFAS-based coatings for moisture resistance and durability. PFAS in turnout gear — the outer shell, moisture barrier, and thermal liner — can off-gas and be absorbed through skin during use, especially when the gear is heated during firefighting operations. California enacted a 100 ppm limit for PFAS in firefighter protective gear in 2025, and NFPA Standard 1970-2025 imposes new PFAS content limits. This represents a second, legally distinct PFAS exposure pathway for firefighters that does not require AFFF application history. Attorneys representing firefighters should evaluate both AFFF and turnout gear exposure pathways.
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Related Guides
- PFAS Biosolids Farm Contamination LawsuitPFAS-contaminated biosolids (sewage sludge) spread as agricultural fertilizer have contaminated private wells and farmland across the United States — a largely invisible exposure pathway that is only now reaching litigation. Affected farmers, rural homeowners, and farmworkers in Maine, Iowa, Michigan, and Texas have active claims. This is one of the least-covered and fastest-growing fronts in PFAS litigation.
- GenX Chemicals Chemours Lawsuit — Cape Fear RiverChemours Company — a DuPont spinoff — has discharged GenX chemicals (HFPO-DA) from its Fayetteville Works facility in Bladen County, North Carolina into the Cape Fear River since 2006. Wilmington-area residents who drank Cape Fear River water have been exposed to GenX and other PFAS at concentrations far above EPA health advisory levels. This is among the largest active industrial PFAS contamination zones in the eastern United States, and it is significantly underserved by legal content.
- PFAS Kidney Cancer LawsuitKidney cancer (renal cell carcinoma) is the MDL 2873 Tier 1 bellwether injury — the PFAS-linked condition with the strongest and most consistent epidemiological association. The IARC classified PFOA as a Group 1 known human carcinogen for kidney cancer in 2023. Individuals who developed kidney cancer after sustained PFAS exposure through drinking water have among the strongest claims in PFAS litigation.
- Military Base PFAS Contamination LawsuitMore than 700 U.S. military installations have confirmed PFAS contamination from decades of AFFF firefighting foam use. Veterans, active-duty service members, military families, and civilian base employees who lived or worked on contaminated installations and developed kidney cancer, testicular cancer, or thyroid disease may have substantial legal claims. The DoD has confirmed contamination at bases in all 50 states.
- Military Bases with PFAS Contamination — Complete ListThe Department of Defense has confirmed PFAS contamination at more than 700 U.S. military installations as of 2026. This page provides a state-by-state summary of confirmed contaminated bases and the communities affected. If you lived or served at a contaminated installation and developed a qualifying health condition, contact a PFAS attorney to evaluate your claim.
- PFAS Settlement Amounts Per PersonThe $12.5 billion 3M settlement and $1.185 billion DuPont/Chemours/Corteva settlement compensate water utilities — not individuals. Individual PFAS personal injury settlement amounts depend on injury category, exposure documentation, and MDL 2873 bellwether trial outcomes. Kidney and testicular cancer claims are expected to produce the highest individual recoveries, estimated at $300,000 to $600,000 or more.
- PFAS Lawsuit Statute of Limitations by StateThe statute of limitations for PFAS personal injury claims is typically 2 to 3 years from diagnosis or from when you discovered the PFAS-illness connection. Because military and industrial PFAS contamination was not publicly disclosed until 2016–2020 in most communities, courts have been receptive to delayed discovery arguments. Act now — deadlines are real, and missing them permanently bars your claim.
- PFAS Testicular Cancer LawsuitTesticular cancer is an MDL 2873 Tier 1 injury category with one of the strongest epidemiological links to PFAS — particularly PFOS exposure. The cancer predominantly affects younger men (age 15–35), meaning veterans and firefighters who developed testicular cancer after PFAS exposure at military installations often carry decades of lost earnings and quality-of-life damages. Claims in MDL 2873 are active and advancing toward bellwether trials in 2026.
- PFAS Thyroid Disease and Thyroid Cancer LawsuitPFAS disrupt thyroid hormone signaling by mimicking and competing with thyroid hormones at receptor and transport protein binding sites. Women are disproportionately affected. Diagnosed thyroid disease requiring medication (hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, Hashimoto's thyroiditis) and thyroid cancer are recognized injury categories in MDL 2873. A 2018 Mount Sinai study found significantly elevated thyroid cancer risk with higher serum PFAS concentrations.
- PFAS Ulcerative Colitis LawsuitUlcerative colitis — a chronic inflammatory bowel disease — was one of the six conditions designated by the C8 Science Panel as having a probable link to PFOA exposure in the Mid-Ohio Valley study. This is a non-cancer qualifying condition recognized in MDL 2873 personal injury proceedings. Claimants with PFAS exposure and a confirmed ulcerative colitis diagnosis may have viable claims even without a cancer diagnosis.
- PFAS Drinking Water Contamination LawsuitPFAS-contaminated municipal water systems and private wells have exposed millions of Americans to dangerous concentrations of forever chemicals. Residents who drank contaminated tap water for years and developed kidney cancer, testicular cancer, or thyroid disease have individual claims in MDL 2873. You do not need to have lived near a military base — industrial and agricultural PFAS sources have contaminated water supplies across the country.
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