Many veterans may be unaware that, in 2003, the VA released a document called the National Cancer Strategy, which outlines their plan for treating vets with various forms of cancer.
The National Cancer Strategy [NCS] document was published in June of 2003, and it stated that roughly 35,000 new cases of cancer are diagnosed in VA patients annually – a number that has undoubtedly increased in the last 7 years. The VA released the NCS in an effort to provide information about how the veteran healthcare system would treat vets with cancer. Not only did it address cancer in general, but it also highlighted the cancers recognized by the VA as being “service connected.” Surprisingly, the list did not include mesothelioma, a form of cancer diagnosed in vets who were exposed to asbestos while aboard naval ships and via other military exposure sites [airplanes, base housing].
In short, the document [available on the VA website] outlines their plan for treating cancer, raising awareness, and providing cancer-related information to veterans. It also states that VA medical centers must establish a tumor registry and report incidents of new cancers to the Central Cancer Directory in an effort to collect new statistics. It also stressed the following items:
· Connecting vets with hospice care facilities, if necessary
· Providing rehab services to veteran inpatients and outpatients with cancer
· Increasing vet participation in clinical cancer trials
· Providing cancer screening for veterans
· Conducting cancer research specific to veterans
· Ensuring that vets receive the best cancer treatment available
It is safe to assume that a large number of veterans did not see this document or even know about the National Cancer Strategy, as it is fairly difficult to locate on the VA website, but unfortunately, the directive expired in 2008.
The VA says it is still committed to treating veterans with cancer. However, as previously mentioned, the NCS document, Attachment B – “Malignancies Recognized by VA as Presumed to be Service Connected Based on Hazardous Exposures” excluded mesothelioma cancer. Other cancers related to hazardous exposures, like acute nonlymphocytic leukemia [caused by exposure to Nitrogen Mustard] made the list.
Why wouldn’t mesothelioma – a fatal cancer that has no cure and affects at least 2,500 Americans annually, many of whom are veterans – be included in Attachment B? It is difficult, in many cases, to pinpoint a mesothelioma sufferer’s actual place of exposure to asbestos, as it was so widely used prior to the institution of usage laws in the 1980s. Asbestos was used extensively on naval ships, but it could also be found in other locations – shipyards, commercial and residential buildings, etc. A veteran who served on board a naval ship may have been exposed to asbestos in other places, too, and because the disease has a latency period of up to fifty years, it is sometimes impossible to determine whether or not a vet’s exposure was “service connected.”
Nonetheless, the VA does treat veterans with mesothelioma cancer. However, according to the VA website, mesothelioma is still not recognized as a service connected cancer.
It is important that you contact your local VA healthcare center upon a diagnosis of any type of cancer to receive more information about how their healthcare system can best assist you and your family.
