North Texas widow pushes for esophageal cancer screenings in firehouses after husband's missed diagnosis
A North Texas widow is turning heartbreak into action after losing her firefighter husband to cancer that went undetected until it was too late. Now, she's working to bring early detection screenings for esophageal cancer directly to firehouses.
Sylvia Burleson says her husband, Erik, always dreamed of being a firefighter, a role they both knew came with risks.
"You don't think about it when you marry into it," she said. "You just don't think about it. You try not to."
According to the International Association of Fire Fighters, occupational cancer is the leading cause of death in the fire service.
"All the chemicals they're around, the fires, the asbestos... there's just so much stuff involved," she said.
Erik Burleson served with the Stephenville Fire Department for 28 years. In 2016, after experiencing what he thought was a heart attack, he went for testing. Doctors told him it was an esophageal hernia.
"He was cleared," Sylvia Burleson said.
But five years later, in 2021, came a devastating diagnosis...cancer in his lungs, liver, lymph nodes, esophagus, and bones.
"They did some tests... It was horrible. You're kind of numb. In shock," she said. "It was typical precancer, five years ago, and we didn't know. They didn't tell us that."
Erik Burleson died less than a year later, in 2022.
"Had we been told then, we could have done something," Sylvia Burleson said.
Motivated by the belief that early detection could have saved her husband, Sylvia Burleson founded the Erik Burleson Firefighter Cancer Foundation.
Her goal is to raise money to provide free early detection cancer screenings for esophageal cancer to firefighters across Texas, starting in Stephenville.
In May, the foundation held its first screening event at the Stephenville Fire Department.
"Anything we can do in the vein of preventing cancer or early detection, we're on board for," said Fire Chief Robert Isbell, who supported the event. A total of 21 firefighters were tested.
"I encourage everyone in the fire service to get this test," Isbell said.
For him, the importance of the screenings quickly became personal when he tested positive.
"I had no outward signs. I didn't think I had any risk factors that were overt," he said. "But I tested positive. And I share that because I want everyone to know, they need to be tested."
Isbell is now undergoing further testing and says Erik Burleson's story may be the reason he has a chance.
"His legacy is in just this...this early detection," he said. "It's a testament to Sylvia and Erik's life."
"If we could just save one life, then it's worth it," Sylvia Burleson said.
The Stephenville Fire Department plans to host a second screening event at the end of the month. More information can be found by .
