On May 7, 2019, Representative Lee Zeldin (NY) introduced
H.R. 2568, the Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act.
This bill would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in
consultation with the Director of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention
of the Department of Health and Human Services, to conduct an epidemiological
study on the prevalence of cholangiocarcinoma in veterans of the Vietnam
era. H.R. 2568 would require the
Secretary to provide a report of the study within one year of completion.
Bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma) is a cancer of the
biliary duct system, which includes the gallbladder, bile ducts, and certain
cells inside the liver. One risk factor
for bile duct cancer is past infection with tiny parasitic worms called liver
flukes, which are found in the fresh waters of Southeast Asia. Veterans who ate
raw or undercooked freshwater fish during their service in Southeast Asia, such
as Vietnam veterans, might have been infected.
Once eaten, the liver flukes grow to adulthood inside the human biliary
duct system. The irritation and scarring caused by liver fluke infection can
lead to bile duct cancer. Currently,
there are no available studies to show that bile duct cancer occurs more often
in Vietnam veterans than in other groups.
DAV strongly supports H.R. 2568 as it will help determine if
this Vietnam veteran environmental exposure can be linked to bile duct
cancer. This legislation is in accord
with DAV Resolution No. 090.
Please use the prepared electronic letter or draft your own
to urge your Representative to support and cosponsor H.R. 2568. As always, we appreciate your support for DAV
and your grassroots activism in participating in DAV CAN. Thank you for all you do for America's
veterans and their families.
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