From 1962 to 1971 over 19 million gallons of herbicides were used in southern Vietnam during the Vietnam War to kill dense jungle vegetation in order to expose enemy soldiers and supplies hidden in the dense forests. The best-known of the chemical mixtures used is Agent Orange, named after the orange-striped barrels in which it was shipped. Agent Orange was sprayed from planes, helicopters, boats, ground vehicles, and by soldiers wearing equipment on their backs. Agent Orange was also used around U.S. military bases in Vietnam to clear flight strips and to clear vegetation around hospitals. Soldiers also used the empty barrels for barbecue pits.

Adverse effects of exposure
No one knows exactly what soldiers' exposure levels to Agent Orange were back then. But Vietnam veterans know it certainly had an effect on them. Over the years, research has backed the veterans' claims. Agent Orange has been linked to spina bifida (a birth defect), and tentatively linked to respiratory cancers, prostate cancer, multiple myeloma (cancer), neuropathies, and porphyria cutanea tarda (a skin disorder).

Government mandates study
In 1991, the U.S. Congress passed the Agent Orange Act, which mandated that a series of studies be conducted every two years for 10 years in order to evaluate the health effects of the herbicides used in Vietnam. The National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine assembled an independent panel of experts for the 2000 Committee to review the latest research findings. Their report, "Veterans and Agent Orange, Update 2000," was released on April 19, 2001.

This latest report contains a new piece of information. New research suggests a connection exists between acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) in children and their fathers' military service in Vietnam or Cambodia.

A deadly cancer
Acute myelogenous leukemia (also called acute nonlymphocytic leukemia, or ANLL) is a fast-growing cancer of the bone marrow cells which usually occurs in children under 2 years old. It is equally rare among boys and girls of all races. Unfortunately, five-year survival rates for AML (meaning the percentage of patients who live at least five years after being diagnosed) is only about 40%.

This means that of the veterans' children who developed AML in the past, few are alive today to receive any future government compensation for their illness. "We've estimated that somewhere between 500 and 1,000 children could have been affected," said Mark Brown, director of the Veterans Administration's environmental agents service. Although veterans might want to obtain compensation for the cost of care of children who died of AML in the past decades, the U.S. government is likely to pay only for cases of AML that occur after compensation is mandated.

A bittersweet victory
For some veterans, the research studies being pursued now should have been done many years ago. Other are glad that the information is finally coming out. In an interview, Linda Schwartz, an Air Force veteran and advisor for the Vietnam Veterans of America, said, "You can't give someone back their health or their life, but you can give them the satisfaction of knowing they are suffering because of what they did for their country." For some veterans, the news this week brought them a little closer to that satisfaction.

Information for this article was taken from:
- American Cancer Society. Childhood Leukemia. Available online.
- Christensen, Damaris. "Still struggling with chemical fallout: Vietnam vets blame Agent Orange for an array of ailments." Available online at MSNBC.com.
- MSNBC News Services. "Agent Orange linked to child cancer." April 19, 2001.
- Reuters Medical News, April 19, 2001. "US Government Report Links Agent Orange to Fatal Childhood Leukemia."
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "Agent Orange Might Boost the Risk of Leukemia, UNC Researcher Says." Science Daily, April 20, 2001.

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