Neil Brooksbank is certain that fighting thousands of fires over the years has caused his bladder cancer.
Because it is one of 12 cancers that the Tasmanian government recognises as being caused by firefighting, his compensation claim was approved without needing to prove he contracted it at work.
"It made it a lot easier once the ball got rolling," he said.
"All of the medical expenses, the great work that I'm getting [from the Icon Cancer Centre] and all of the specialists and the fact that I don't have to get out bed every morning and go to work and manage treatment and the like, that's all covered now."
But for firefighters diagnosed with cancers not on the list, the compensation process is much more complex.
The United Firefighters Union (UFU) of Australia is lobbying governments around the country to add another eight cancers; malignant mesothelioma and cervical, ovarian, penile, thyroid, pancreatic, skin and lung cancer; to the presumptive cancer list.
UFU national secretary Greg McConville said firefighters diagnosed with cancer deserved to be able to focus on their recovery.
"It's important that they not be stressed by legal battles and by fights with lawyers seeking to justify why and how they got cancer," he said.
"Without presumptive legislation it is impossible for a firefighter to prove that their cancer was caused by any particular incident, because in the course of their careers they face thousands of incidents."
He said presumptive cancer legislation is critical to increasing cancer testing rates and detecting the disease early.
Tasmania the first state to extend presumptive cancer list
The Tasmanian government on Thursday joined the Commonwealth in announcing it would extend the presumptive list to include all 20 cancers, the first state government to do so.
Workplace Safety Minister Elise Archer said it was important to ensure the health of Tasmania's career and volunteer firefighters.
"While our firefighters have excellent training and equipment to protect them, not all hazards can be completely removed from their workplace," she said.
"They are exposed to toxins in smoke, fuel and other hazardous materials at emergency incidents."
She said it was significant the legislation would include female reproductive cancers for the first time.
"The health of our female firefighters is valued just as much as their male counterparts, and these changes are a clear signal that gender equity and fair compensation for fire-fighters injured at work matter," she said.
Firefighter Belinda Schultz said the change was an extremely important one.
She initially thought it "strange" women's reproductive cancers were not included in Tasmania's first cancer list of 2013, but did not dwell on it because of the small number of female fighters in service at the time.
"We've probably dropped the ball a little bit in that time frame and it's time now, it's pretty much a no-brainer," she said.
"If we're recognising cancers in male reproductive organs then we also need to do it females, no matter the numbers."
Fire and Emergency Management Minister Felix Ellis said legislation would be introduced in State Parliament as soon as possible.
He said the government had not yet made a decision on whether it would be made retrospective, to cover people diagnosed with the additional cancers since the presumptive legislation came into effect in 2013.
Mr McConville said the Tasmanian announcement was "huge", but added it was crucial it be applied retrospectively.
