(Via Trenis' Flickr)

In a report to be released sometime in the next few weeks, the FDNY claims to prove a direct link between 9/11 and the cancer rate among first responders, which contradicts what a study released in late July said. In the latter report, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) said that there was "insufficient evidence" showing a link between the tragedy and cancer rates, which meant victims wouldn't receive federal dollars under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

The FDNY's findings, however, will say that the rate of cancer among the firefighters responding to the tragedy has skyrocketed. A source told The New York Post, "Before 9/11, the incidence of cancer with firefighters was significantly less than that of the general population and the incidence after 9/11 put firefighters equivalent to the general population."

First responders who have been diagnosed with cancer since helping sort out 9/11 are unmoved by the findings. "It's not shocking to me," said John Walcott, a 46-year-old retired NYPD detective. He was diagnosed with leukemia in 2003, and says that the report backs up what he has seen. "I've met more people who worked at Ground Zero with my type of cancer in the last eight years than I did at my doctor's office," he said. "I didn't need a study to know the numbers would be astronomical."

Hopefully this study will begin the push toward including cancer as a covered ailment under the bill. To quote Jon Stewart, "I thought we already took care of this s@#t."