Martha Rhodes’ Journey: The Hidden Cancer Crisis of 9/11 Survivors
On the day the Twin Towers fell, Martha Rhodes was just a 14-minute walk away. She got cancer from dust. Now she's finally being recognized as a victim of the
A world shrouded in a thick, toxic dust, the aftermath of one of the most catastrophic events in American history. The Twin Towers collapse, and for many, life was never the same. This is Martha Rhodes’ story—a harrowing tale of survival, suffering, and the long, arduous road to recognition – the cancer Crisis of 9/11
Keywords: Martha Rhodes, 9/11, cancer diagnosis, survivor story, World Trade Center, toxic dust
The Day That Changed Everything
Martha Rhodes will never forget that day 23 years ago when the blue skies of New York turned black. The sound of the plane crashing into the North Tower was more than just a noise—it was the prelude to a nightmare. Martha, who was working in her North Moore Street apartment, just a 14-minute walk from the World Trade Center, felt the world crumble around her.
*Ground Zero engulfed in dust and debris just after the collapse.*
As she walked to a friend’s apartment in Greenwich Village, 1.8 miles from the scene, she was engulfed in a nightmarish cloud of dust that would stalk her for decades. This dust, churning with lethal particles like fiberglass, lead, and asbestos, lingered in the air for over three months, exposing 400,000 residents and workers around Ground Zero to a deadly mix.
An Apartment Under Siege
Doctors now link this hazardous dust to a slew of health issues, from chronic sinusitis to asthma and even cancer. Martha’s battle against the dust wouldn’t be her last fight.
For the next many months, maybe even as long as a year, my apartment and workspace were located just a block and a half west of the barges where debris from the attack was being unloaded,” Martha recounts. The toxic fumes filled her living space, a constant reminder of the tragedy that had unfolded.
The Unexpected Diagnosis
Eight years after the attacks, Martha, then 48, was diagnosed with uterine cancer. The irony was cruel. The woman who had survived the ruins now faced another life-threatening ordeal. And yet, she persevered, unknowingly just one of many still suffering the shadowy repercussions of 9/11.
*Marcy Borders, known as “Dust Lady,” became an emblematic face of the 9/11 aftermath. She passed away in 2015 from stomach cancer.*
It took until 2019—and another brutal diagnosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia—for Martha to connect her cancers with the harrowing events of September 11, 2001. Despite having insurance, the costs of chemotherapy and radiation treatments left her with substantial medical bills.
Cancer Crisis of 9/11: Fighting for Recognition
The federal World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP), established in 2011 to aid survivors and responders, came too late to help Martha with her initial round of treatments. Though now a participant, the program only began covering uterine cancer, officially recognized as a 9/11-related illness, earlier this year. This hard-won victory followed years of fervent advocacy by survivors.
“It’s a hovering shadow,” Martha admits. Even though the possibility of cancer returning is remote, it lingers over her. Her story underscores the necessity and the delayed justice of recognizing and assisting victims of the 9/11 dust.
A Journey Toward Justice
In a letter dated January 9 to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. expressed his frustration over the delay in recognizing uterine cancer as a 9/11-related illness. Finally, the program administrator, John Howard, acknowledged the update as a significant step toward closing an important gap in healthcare for women affected by the attacks.
As of September 2022, over 120,000 responders and survivors are enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Program, 23% of whom are women. Martha Rhodes’ story is a poignant reminder of the many lives that continue to be haunted by the dust that settled that tragic day.
