Scores of Missourians enrolled in health program for 9/11 responders, survivors
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
More than 100 World Trade Center first responders and survivors in Missouri are enrolled in a program that offers health care for problems related to the 9/11 terror attack and its aftermath.
Since the attacks, several programs and research initiatives have been established to monitor, treat and comprehend the long-term health effects the toxic and hazardous materials had on first responders.
One of the most significant is the World Trade Center Health Program that was established 10 years later on Jan. 2, 2011, when former President Barack Obama signed the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 into law.
The program offers free medical monitoring, treatment and mental health services to first responders and survivors who were in the disaster area on 9/11 or in the months following, for the duration of their lives.
The program is authorized and funded through October 1, 2090, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
More than 95,000 first responders were enrolled in the program as of June 30, up from about 56,000 when the program was created in 2011.
As of July 2025, 117 first responders and survivors were enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Program in Missouri.
Courtesy: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The World Trade Center Health Program reports that it has identified 68 different forms of cancer linked to 9/11.
- Non-melanoma skin cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Melanoma
- Lymphoma
- Thyroid cancer
- Kidney cancer
- Lung/bronchus cancer
- Leukemia
- Bladder cancer
- Colon cancer
- Female breast cancer
- Myeloma
- Oropharynx cancer
- Rectal cancer
- Neuroendocrine cancer
Researchers who studied the toxins released into the air on 9/11 have identified over 70 different deadly carcinogens, according to the World Trade Center Health Program. Some cancers caused by 9/11-related asbestos exposure can take 20 years to develop.
The organization says the dust and smoke from when the buildings collapsed contained jet fuel, lead, soot, concrete, metals, glass fibers and more.
As of June 30, responders and survivors accounted for 42,372 certifications for chronic rhinosinusitis, 39,190 for gastroesophageal reflux disease, 23,137 for asthma and 18,321 for post-traumatic stress disorder, according to the World Trade Center Health Program.
Since the attacks, the World Trade Center Health Program has recorded 57,044 WTC-related cancer certifications among responders and survivors, according to program data through June 30. The total includes 28,131 certifications among responders and 28,913 among survivors.
