Question: I recently attended the funeral of a fellow Vietnam vet. His family said he died of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and had been receiving treatment and monetary benefits from the VA because he had been exposed to Agent Orange. I served in the same unit as he in Vietnam and I worry that I may have been exposed also. Can you tell me about other diseases associated with Agent Orange?

 Answer: The DOD has prepared information listing locations and dates where herbicides, including Agent Orange, were used in Vietnam between January 9, 1962 and May 7, 1975. Veterans who served in the area during the conflict are presumed to have been exposed to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during military operations, according to the 2010 edition of Federal Benefits for Veterans.

 Also, veterans who served in Korea in 1968 or 1969 may have been exposed to Agent Orange and other toxicants. The list pinpoints areas where more than 19 million gallons of various herbicide combinations were sprayed. According to the U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs, heavily sprayed areas included:

• Inland forests near the demarcation zone
• Inland forests at the junction of the borders of Cambodia, Laos and South Vietnam
• Inland forests north and northwest of Saigon
• Mangrove forests on the southernmost peninsula of Vietnam
• Mangrove forests along major shipping channels southeast of Saigon
• Korea Demilitarized Zone

 Disabled American Veterans (DAV) hosted a weekend workshop for more than 80 veterans at Fort Stewart in Southeast Georgia in July to help them stay abreast of entitled benefits. Among the handouts given included a list of diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange.

 The VA recognizes the following health problems associated with exposure:

• Acute and Subacute Peripheral Neuropathy – A nervous system condition that causes numbness, tingling and motor weakness. Under the VA ratings, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within 1 year of exposure to Agent Orange and resolve within 2 years after the date it began.
• AL Amyloidosis – A rare disease caused when an abnormal protein, amyloid, enters tissues or organs.
• Chloracne (or similar acne-form disease) – A skin condition that occurs soon after dioxin exposure and looks like common forms of acne seen in teenagers. Under VA ratings, chloracne (or other acne-form diseases similar to chloracne) must be at least 10 percent disabling within 1 year of exposure to Agent Orange.
• Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia – A disease that progresses slowly with increasing production of excessive numbers of white blood cells.
• Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2) – A disease characterized by high blood sugar levels resulting from the body’s inability to respond properly to hormone insulin.
• Hodgkin’s Disease – A malignant lymphoma (cancer) characterized by progressive enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver, spleen and anemia.
• Multiple Myeloma – A cancer of specific bone marrow cells that is characterized by bone marrow tumors.
• Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma – A group of cancers that affect the lymph glands and other lymphatic tissue.
• Porphyria Cutanea Tarda – A disorder characterized by liver dysfunction and by thinning and blistering of the skin in sun-exposed areas. Under VA ratings, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within 1 year of exposure to Agent Orange.
• Prostate Cancer – One of the most common cancers among men.
• Respiratory Cancers – Cancers of the lung, larynx, trachea and bronchus.
• Soft Tissue Sarcoma (other than Osteosarcoma, Chondrosarcoma, Kaposi’s Sarcoma or Mesothelioma) – Different types of cancers affecting muscle, fat, blood, lymph vessels and connective tissues.

 Veterans who served in Vietnam are eligible for a free Agent Orange Registry examination. The examination includes exposure and medical histories, laboratory tests and physical exam. For more information, contact your nearest VA health-care facility.

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Russell Davis has spent the last few years aggressively seeking answers to his own veterans’ benefit questions. He’ll be taking over the Taking on Life blog every Friday to tell you what he’s learned and to help honorable military discharged women and men, their spouses, partners and others to find answers. Click here to read his previous questions and answers, or to ask him a question.

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