Agent Orange

Background

About 3 million Americans served in the armed forces in Vietnam during the Vietnam War, some of whom were exposed to a defoliant herbicide mixture called Agent Orange. The mission, known as Operation Ranch Hand, involved spraying 20 million gallons of Agent Orange over roughly 3.6 million acres of Vietnamese land to remove forest cover, destroy crops, and clear vegetation from US bases. Research is still being conducted to ascertain the lasting health consequences of exposure to Agent Orange since it has thus far been linked to several cancers and diseases.

Operation Ranch Hand lasted from 1962 to 1971, and different formulations of herbicide mixtures were used, but most were mixtures of phenoxy herbicides 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2,45-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T). The mixtures were shipped in chemical drums marked with a colored stripe to identify the mixture. A widely used mixture contained equal parts of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T. This mixture was shipped in drums marked with orange stripes; hence the name Agent Orange. Agent Orange today generally means all phenoxy herbicides sprayed at the time. Some of the mixtures were contaminated with minute amounts of dioxins which were present as a result of the manufacturing process. Dioxins are part of a family of biologically active chlorinated aromatic compounds formed during the combustion of chlorine materials, or other processes. Dioxins persist for years in the environment, and are called persistent organic pollutants. The dioxin in Agent Orange, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, also known as TCDD, is highly toxic. Exposure to Agent Orange varied. The large scale spraying in Operation Ranch Hand were done using airplanes and helicopters, but herbicides were also sprayed from boats, ground vehicles, and by soldiers. Because exposures were so varied, it is difficult to quantify how much exposure equals which health effects. Several studies have been conducted, including:

• The Vietnam Experience Study (VES) by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) The Department of Veterans Affairs conducted studies in the 1980'sThe Air Force Health Study focused on Ranch Hand veterans. More information on the Air Force study is available at the Air Force Research Laboratory web site.
• The Agent Orange Act of 1991 directed the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ask The Institute of Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences to form The Committee to Review the Health Effects in Vietnam Veterans of Exposure to Herbicides.
• The National Toxicology Program has classified 2,3,7,8-TCDD, the dioxin in Agent Orange, to be a known human carcinogen.

FROM THE LAW OFFICES OF THOMAS J. LAMB. P.A.

USED WITH THE KIND PERMISSION OF LAW OFFICES OF THOMAS J. LAMB, P.A.

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