Agent Orange Presumptive List

If you are a Vietnam War veteran and were exposed to the herbicide defoliant known as Agent Orange, you may be entitled to benefits. The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) increased the number of illnesses that are now presumed to have been caused by Agent Orange. The full list of presumptive conditions are listed below.
  • AL amyloidosis: A rare illness that happens when an abnormal protein (called amyloid) enters the body’s tissues or organs. These include the organs like the heart, kidneys, or liver.
  • Bladder cancer: A type of cancer that affects the bladder where urine is stored before it leaves the body. The most common type of bladder cancer starts in the cells that line the inside of the bladder. This is called urothelial or transitional cell carcinoma. 
  • Chloracne (or other types of acneiform disease like it): A skin condition that happens soon after exposure to chemicals. It looks like common forms of acne often seen in teenagers. Under our rating regulations, this condition must be at least 10% disabling within 1 year of herbicide exposure.
  • Chronic B-cell leukemia: A type of cancer that affects white blood cells. These are cells in the body’s immune system that help to fight off illnesses and infections.
  • Diabetes mellitus type 2: An illness that happens when the body can’t respond to the hormone insulin the way it should. This leads to high blood sugar levels.
  • Hodgkin’s disease: A type of malignant lymphoma (cancer) that causes the lymph nodes, liver, and spleen to grow progressively larger. It also causes red blood cells to decrease more and more over time (called anemia).
  • Hypothyroidism: A condition that causes the thyroid gland to not produce enough of certain important hormones. Hypothyroidism can cause health problems like obesity, joint pain, infertility, and heart disease.
  • Ischemic heart disease: A type of heart disease that happens when the heart doesn’t get enough blood. This leads to chest pain.
  • Multiple myeloma: A type of cancer that affects the plasma cells. These are a type of white blood cells made in the bone marrow that help to fight infection.
  • Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma: A group of cancers that affect the lymph glands and other lymphatic tissue. These are parts of the immune system that help to fight infection and illness.
  • Parkinsonism: Any condition that causes a combination of abnormal movements. These include slow movements, trouble speaking, stiff muscles, or tremors. Tremors are rhythmic shaking movements in a part of the body caused by muscle contractions that you can't control.
  • Parkinson’s disease: A progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects muscle movement—and often worsens over time. The nervous system is the network of nerves and fibers that send messages between the brain and spinal cord and other areas of the body.
  • Peripheral neuropathy, early onset: An illness of the nervous system that causes numbness, tingling, and motor (or muscle) weakness. Under our rating regulations, this condition must be at least 10% disabling within 1 year of herbicide exposure.
  • Porphyria cutanea tarda: A rare illness that can make the liver stop working the way it should. It can also cause the skin to thin and blister when exposed to the sun. Under our rating regulations, this condition must be at least 10% disabling within 1 year of herbicide exposure.
  • Prostate cancer: Cancer of the prostate and one of the most common cancers among men
  • Respiratory cancers (including lung cancer): Cancers of the organs involved in breathing. These include cancers of the lungs, larynx, trachea, and bronchus.
  • Some soft tissue sarcomas: A group of different types of cancers in body tissues such as muscle, fat, blood and lymph vessels, and connective tissues. We don’t include osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, Kaposi’s sarcoma, or mesothelioma on our list of presumptive diseases.

If you have an illness that’s not on our list of presumptive diseases, but you believe it was caused by Agent Orange exposure, you can still file a claim for VA disability benefits. But you’ll need to submit more evidence. Please contact the office so we can further discuss your options.

Birth Defects Linked to Agent Orange

Male Veterans: If you served in Vietnam or Thailand, or in or near the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)—and your child has spina bifida or certain other birth defects—your child may be able to get disability benefits. 

Female Veterans: VA presumes that certain birth defects in biological children of women Vietnam Veterans were caused by military service when the birth mother served in Vietnam between February 28, 1961 and May 7, 1975. Eligible children may receive VA benefits.


***PACT Act Changes***

NEW Areas of Operation: Addition of Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Guam, American Samoa, and Johnson Atoll

NEW Presumptives: Hypertension, Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance.

Please see the PACT Act tab or call the office at 724-284-5352 to discuss.