Agent Orange Cancer Risk in Veterans Discounted

The Centers for Disease Control said today its long-awaited study of Agent Orange shows Vietnam veterans at increased risk of only one type of cancer--and “no evidence” that the risk stems from exposure to the dangerous herbicide used in the war.

The study, which had been criticized by veterans groups even before it was released, focused on Vietnam veterans and cancer, and “only indirectly evaluated Agent Orange exposure,” the CDC said.

But it added that the cancer risk among the veterans in the study “seemed to be the opposite of the pattern for use of Agent Orange.” Veterans who served on Navy ships were somewhat more likely to get cancer than those who served on land, and veterans who served in the region of heaviest Agent Orange use were at “somewhat lower risk” than others, the CDC said.

Agent Orange, sprayed by the U.S. military to remove jungle and crops in Vietnam, contained dioxin, a highly toxic chemical that some studies have found to increase the risk of cancer.

The CDC study, conducted over five years, surveyed male cancer patients who were the right age to have served in Vietnam, whether they did serve or not. They were compared with a group of similar males with no history of cancer.

The patients’ medical records were examined for six kinds of cancer, including soft tissue cancer and similar sarcomas, a group of cancers which the CDC concedes has been “of great concern among Vietnam veterans.”

The Veterans Administration has been awaiting the study before making its decision on whether to award benefits to veterans exposed to Agent Orange. Nearly 35,000 claims have been filed citing the chemical as a cause of disabilities, including cancer, skin disease and miscarriages by veterans’ wives.