January 23, 2004 WASHINGTON (AP) -- A study has found an increased risk of prostate cancer and melanoma among Air Force veterans of the Vietnam War who sprayed the chemical defoliant Agent Orange, the Air Force said Thursday.
The cancer incidence was found to be 1.46 to 2.33 times higher than among the national population.
An analysis of the study is to be published in the February edition of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. The Air Force released a synopsis of the article, which was written by members of an Air Force group that has been studying the Agent Orange matter for more than 20 years.
Betty Anne Mauger, an Air Force spokeswoman, said the Air Force did not plan to release the study or the article before publication.
The study is to be reviewed by the National Academy of Sciences, which will report its results to the Veterans Affairs Department.
From 1962 to 1971, the Air Force sprayed an estimated 11 million gallons of defoliants, mainly Agent Orange, over Vietnam to destroy jungle cover for communist troops in a campaign known as Operation Ranch Hand.
American veterans and many Vietnamese have blamed a variety of illnesses, including birth defects, cancers and nervous disorders, on exposure to the defoliant.
Vietnam's government says about 1 million Vietnamese are victims of Agent Orange, including veterans, civilians living in affected areas and their descendants. The U.S. government maintains there is no proven direct link between dioxin and many of those illnesses.
Since it began health examinations of veterans in 1982, the Air Force has studied the issue of whether long-term health damage to Ranch Hand flyers and ground crews can be attributed to Agent Orange.
Copyright 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
