Firefighter With Rare Kidney Cancer Establishes Condition as Occupational Disease

The Illinois Appellate Court upheld an award of benefits to a firefighter for his kidney cancer, finding he established an occupational disease by a preponderance of the evidence. Matt Wood worked as a firefighter for a city in Missouri before moving to Illinois and becoming a firefighter for the City of Springfield. He has had arrhythmia over the years and had open heart surgery when he was 3 years old, but he never had any problems with his kidneys and never smoked. In July 2013, Wood sought medical treatment for abdominal pain and fever. He was diagnosed with diverticulitis. After under...