The Department of Veteran Affairs will Propose adding nine rare respiratory cancers to the list of presumed service-connected disabilities.
When the proposal is finalized, Veterans, survivors, and dependents who had claims previously denied for any of the below listed respiratory cancers will be encouraged to file a supplemental claim for benefits.
The Nine Rare Respiratory Cancers to be added are as follows;
- Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the larynx;
- SCC of the trachea;
- Adenocarcinoma of the trachea;
- Salivary gland-type tumors of the trachea;
- Adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung;
- Large cell carcinoma of the lung;
- Salivary gland-type tumors of the lung;
- Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the lung and;
- Typical and atypical carcinoid of the lung.
Any Veteran who had one of the above cancers manifest during or after separation would become eligible for service connection.
The VA intends to focus its rule on the rare respiratory cancers above in Veterans who served any amount of time in the Southwest Asia theater of operations and other locations.
The Southwest Asia theater of operations refers to Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the neutral zone between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, and the airspace above these locations.
