Agent Orange was a defoliant used in Vietnam during the war there. About 2 million American vets have been exposed to the chemical. It has been determined that there are "12 ailments and disorders" that have effected servicemen due to the exposure to the chemical. Now the Department of Veterans Affairs has added another three diseases. The three new ones are Parkinson's, ischemic heart disease and B-cell leukemies. Other diseases are Hodgkin's disease, type 2 diabetes, non-Hodgkins' lymphoma, prostate cancer and respiratory cancers. A full list of the other diseases are posted on "publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/diseases.asp". "The VA is granting disability compensation to any veteran who suffers from any of these ailments-or to the widows of veterans who may have died of them-even if the veteran spent only one day in Vietnam". Some veterans who served in Korea from April 1968 through July 1969 may also qualify for disability compensation.
(Source: "Attention, Vietnam Vets" author unknown. AARP Magazine May/June 2010).
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