Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990 TAG: 9003300145
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: Medium
The study by the national Centers for Disease Control, which looked only indirectly at Agent Orange, did find veterans at increased risk of a relatively rare cancer called non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. But researchers noted the risk was greater among veterans who served on ships than those who served on land, where the herbicide was used.
In Washington, Veterans Secretary Edward J. Derwinski quickly said he would order the Department of Veterans Affairs to pay disability compensation to veterans suffering from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
The study was immediately attacked by veterans groups, which complained it failed to sufficiently examine the cancer risks among the thousands of soldiers who actually worked with the herbicide.
"It is not an Agent Orange study," objected Mary R. Stout, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America.
"This is only a look at Vietnam veterans" who had cancer, added John Hansen, spokesman for the American Legion.
And Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., co-chairman of the Vietnam-Era Veterans in Congress Causus, said: "This action has been a long time coming. However, it is not the final word. We cannot forget the many other veterans who are also suffering and dying from Agent Orange-related diseases and who have just as much evidence supporting their claims."
Agent Orange, sprayed by the U.S. military to remove jungle cover and crops in Vietnam, contained dioxin, a highly toxic chemical that some studies have found to increase cancer risks.
Criticism of the study focused on its methods, which involved comparing cancer patients of Vietnam-veteran age with healthy counterparts.
The study "only indirectly evaluated" Agent Orange exposure, because of the technical difficulties in determining two decades later how much a patient may have been exposed to the herbicide, the Centers for Disease Control said.
Specific analysis of dioxin exposure was impractical, partly because researchers don't know how cancer may skew the results of blood tests for dioxin levels, said Dr. Daniel A. Hoffman, assistant director for science at the CDC's Center for Environmental Health.
The study surveyed cancer patients who were of approximate Vietnam service age - between 15 and 39 in 1968, at the height of U.S. troop involvement. They were compared with 1,776 men of similar age who had no history of cancer.
Veterans were found to have a roughly 50 percent increased risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
"The study did not find any evidence that the increased risk might be due to Agent Orange exposure," said CDC Director William L. Roper.
That conclusion, the CDC said, came in part because the cancer risk among Vietnam veterans "seemed to be the opposite of the pattern for use of Agent Orange."
Veterans from the Navy's ocean ships had somewhat higher cancer risks than those who served on land. And veterans from the region of heaviest Agent Orange use were at "somewhat lower risk" than others, the CDC said.
The Department of Veterans Affairs had been awaiting the results of the study before deciding 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 soldiers' wives.
In announcing the non-Hodgkin's lymphoma benefits, Derwinski mentioned only the link with Vietnam service. He didn't say the connection was because of Agent Orange.
by CNB