Firefighters are known for their bravery. Their job description includes risking their own safety for the sake of others. But it turns out that forging into raging fires isn't the only danger firefighters face. Frequent exposure to smoke and chemical fumes puts them at higher risk of certain diseases, including bladder cancer.

A research team tested over 1,000 active and retired firefighters. Ninety-nine of the firefighters exhibited warning signs of bladder cancer, and two were diagnosed with the disease. The overall incidence rate of bladder cancer for firefighters was 36 of 100,000 -- which is higher than the general population.

Check out AOL Body's quiz to see if you're doing what you can to avoid cancer.

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This weekend, firefighters in California continued battling the blazes that have scorched thousands of acres in the state and burned over 1,700 homes.

Some light rain swept through the Orange and San Diego counties, although rough winds were still making it hard to gain further headway against quenching those wildfires. However, decent gains had been made this past week in curtailing much of the fires.

According to fire authorities, more than a dozen fires had been surrounded and another nine or so were anywhere from 40 percent to 97 percent contained. If you're a reader living in California near these fires, has your air quality become drastically different that you have noticed?

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