If you are a Vietnam War veteran and were exposed to Agent Orange you are twice as likely to develop prostate cancer than unexposed men.  This fact was verified by research done at the UC Davis Cancer Center.

Prostate Cancer Earlier and More Aggressive
Agent Orange-exposed men were diagnosed with prostate cancer at a younger age, had more aggressive grades of cancer, and were more likely to have cancer that spread to other parts of the body by the time they were diagnosed.

Average time from exposure to diagnosis was about 34 years.  Agent Orange (named for the color of the barrel in which it was stored) was one of many broadleaf defoliants used to destroy dense forests between 1962 and 1971.  This was done in order to better visualize enemy activity.  Ground cover and ground troops were contaminated.  It is now a banned chemical.

Other Agent Orange Diseases
Studies done in 1977 reported the relationship between Agent Orange exposure and the development of soft tissue sarcomas (highly malignant tumors), Hodgkin disease, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  However, studies done even as recently as a decade ago did not confirm the same link to prostate cancer.

Add Prostate Cancer to the List
With the aging of Vietnam vets and the use of PSA as a screening tool, the research done at UC, Davis (scheduled to be published in October of 2008) shows convincing evidence that prostate cancer can be added to the list.  Sterility, birth defects in the offspring of exposed individuals, peripheral neuropathy, porphyria cutanea tarda, multiple myeloma, respiratory cancers, diabetes and gum disease are other diagnoses for which exposed individuals are typically screened.

Physicians at UC Davis placed more than 13,000 Vietnam vets into two catagories -- exposed and unexposed.  They took into account age, race, family history, smoking history, body mass index (BMI), finasteride (Proscar) use, prebiopsy PSA level, clinical and pathologic stage, and Gleason (severity stage) score. 

Also taken into account was the fact that aspirin and lipid-lowering agents (statins to reduce cholesterol levels, e.g. Lipitor)  decrease the incidence and the stage of prostate cancer.  The research confirmed  that exposure to Agent Orange is associated not only with an increased incidence of prostate cancer but with more aggressive forms of the disease and younger age of onset.
   
For further information, refer to: "Agent Orange exposure, Vietnam War veterans, and the risk of prostate cancer," Chamie, K MD; deVere White, R MD; Volpp, B MD; Lee, D MD; Ok, J MD; Ellison, L MD, Cancer.