Fox News correspondent Eric Shawn shared on Fox & Friends that he is one of the thousands of people diagnosed with cancer related to the dust from the September 11, 2001, attacks in New York City, Fox News reported. Shawn made this revelation while speaking to 9/11 survivors on the 24th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that took the lives of almost 3,000 Americans.
Shawn was reporting from an event in Lower Manhattan commemorating the lives lost in the attacks. First responders, survivors, and those who lost loved ones attended the event along with public officials to mark two dozen years since two commercial airliners were hijacked and flown into the Twin Towers.
The aftermath of the attacks has changed the New York skyline, air travel, and other facets of American life. It has also meant that some 48,000 people have developed cancer related to exposure to dust from the collapse of the towers and the pile of rubble and debris that smoldered for weeks at Ground Zero.
Shawn revealed he was one of them, having been diagnosed with bronchitis related to his exposure as well as cancer. He did not share his prognosis or the specific type of cancer he is suffering from, however.
Shawn revealed that he has ongoing respiratory issues and was diagnosed with cancer after spending time at the site of the attacks while reporting on the tragedy. "I have two different diagnoses under the World Trade Center Program," Shawn told the hosts, referring to the government program set up to track survivors' health and offer treatment for those exposed to the sites in New York City, in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and the Pentagon.
"It is hard to believe that it has been nearly a quarter of a century since that day, when radical Islamic terrorism attacked the very heart of our city and our country. It is a philosophy that basically hates our principles, our freedoms, what our nation stands for. That has not diminished — and today, again, we all gather here to remember what was lost," Shawn added.
Unfortunately, the loss of life has continued long after the attacks due to dust exposure. "While 2,977 people were murdered here that day, the number who have died from 9/11-related illnesses has increased from the toxic dust that was released," Shawn noted.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recorded 10,000 of those cancer diagnoses came in the last year alone, and that number will only increase as the years go on. "I think of all those who were killed that day and those who continue to suffer because of that philosophy — that is not diminished. We have to condemn it. We have to despise it. You will never forget," Shawn added.
🙏Prayers for @EricShawnTV, who announced his 9/11-related cancer diagnosis on @foxandfriends this morning. @DailyCaller 🙏 pic.twitter.com/ztZaV7sj7t
— Harold Hutchison (@HaroldHutchison) September 11, 2025
The day of the awful tragedy seemed like it would be the worst of it, but that's not the case for the first responders and others who still suffer the consequences to this day. Long after the memorials were erected for the dead and Lower Manhattan rebuilt, the people who survived the initial attack are now getting sick and dying.
Since the 9/11 attacks, at least 3,700 first responders who worked at the scene have died, with 2,300 of them succumbing to cancer linked to dust exposure from the attacks. The worst hit were members of the Fire Department of the City of New York, which lost 409 of its members to illness related to the attacks in addition to those killed when the buildings fell.
It's clear now that the problem is not contained to just those who were working on the site that day. "If you were below Canal Street, basically, you were exposed to the dust," Shawn noted.
"I was here reporting on it. That’s what happened with me. I mean, I’m very, very lucky. I think of all those who are suffering much greater … I’ve lost a few friends from this, of course," the 68-year-old said.
It was devastating for the people near the World Trade Center to have a close-up view of the carnage immediately following the attacks. Now, besides dealing with the trauma of that day, they're left to suffer the health consequences decades afterwards. Our prayers go out to them all, including Eric Shawn.
