Canadian veteran denied compensation for cancer wins appeal

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A Canadian soldier “exposed to hazardous chemicals” from burn pits while serving two tours in Afghanistan has been granted full compensation for testicular cancer after Veterans Affairs initially denied his application.

The former soldier, now a veteran, is not named in a new decision from the Veterans Review and Appeal Board out of Prince Edward Island.

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“The evidence demonstrates that the veteran was exposed to an environmental hazard — burn pit chemicals — while serving in Afghanistan,” the three-person Charlottetown panel concluded.

“The appeal panel accepts that exposure to burn pit smoke is associated with the development of the claimed condition of cancer of the left testicle. This evidence has not been contradicted by evidence to the contrary.”

It granted the former soldier “five-fifths” compensation for his “pain and suffering,” retroactive to Sept. 1, 2021. Veterans Affairs won’t disclose what these compensation awards amount to in terms of dollars due to privacy concerns.

The veteran served about 16 months in Afghanistan between November 2007 and June 2010. He worked with the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar City during his first tour and at Kandahar Airfield during his second.

He first applied for compensation in June 2019, but was denied by both Veterans Affairs and, later, an appeal panel.

“I am writing to provide an impact statement regarding my diagnosis … of testicular cancer in 2019 which I strongly believe is because of my service during multiple tours of duty in Afghanistan,” the former soldier said in a statement contained in the Sept. 18 decision.

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“I was consistently exposed to various hazardous conditions that could potentially have contributed to health issues, including testicular cancer.”

He described regular exposure to burn pits while serving in Kandahar City. “The smoke was really noticeable in the evenings when it would cool off. The smoke would stay low and would roll over the camp.”

He saw “burn pits which happened daily and there was one that was fairly close by,” said the new decision.

“He does not know what was being burned. He breathed in the smoke daily and had no mask.”

The decision describes how the United States “established a presumption of exposure to hazardous substances and a presumption of a medical nexus for specified conditions (in 2022). It established that if you served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, or any other combat zone after 9/11 it is presumed that you would have been exposed to specific toxins and hazards including burn pits, sand and dust, particulates, oil well or sulfur fires, chemicals, radiation, warfare agents, depleted uranium, herbicides, and other occupational hazards.”

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According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, “waste products commonly disposed of in open burn pits include: chemicals, paint, medical and human waste; metal and aluminum cans; munitions and unexploded ordnance; petroleum and lubricant products; plastics, rubber, wood, and food waste,” said the new decision.

It points out that exposure to smoke from the pits may have caused “irritation and burning of eyes or throat, coughing, breathing difficulties, skin itching or rashes. Many of these conditions are temporary and resolve on their own when the exposure ends. However, if you were closer to burn pit smoke or were exposed for longer periods of time, you may be at greater risk for longer-term health conditions.”

The U.S. law dubbed the PACT Act, which stands for Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, addresses such exposures for American troops.

The Canuck veteran with testicular cancer “had trouble breathing when he was in Afghanistan but did not report it and simply carried on,” said the Charlottetown panel.

“If the veteran had served in the U.S. military, he would have met the presumption of hazardous exposure contained in the PACT Act. While this is not determinative in the Canadian context, it’s reasonable to assume that, while serving in Afghanistan, Canadian soldiers would have also been exposed to toxic smoke associated to burn pits.”

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The decision includes an April 21, 2024, medical report from Dr. Mandy Liedeman, a general practitioner in Ontario. She was “quite surprised” Veterans Affairs rejected the former soldier’s disability claim.

After reviewing the medical file of the veteran in question “and all other documentation related to his claim and denial,” Liedeman said the resulting chemicals from burn pits would “include dioxins, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, hexachlorobenzene, and ash.”

That’s what was “circulating in the air continuously at many military bases in Afghanistan,” she said.

“As (the veteran) describes there was visible smoke in the air continuously. In addition, two of his fellow soldiers, who were exposed to the same environment have developed testicular cancer, do you think this is a coincidence?”

Symptoms from that exposure wouldn’t develop immediately, she said. “One would not expect any symptoms during his early exposure to the carcinogens. It would take time for the malignant growth to develop, thus one would only become symptomatic when the cancer is of a significant size. It is quite reasonable for this process to take 10 years.”

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Liedeman noted “there were no air quality regulations in Afghanistan during the time period” the soldier was deployed to Kandahar.

The Ontario doc pointed out that since August of 2022 veterans in the U.S. who were exposed to burn pits have been able to apply for compensation for a wide range of cancers, including testicular cancer.

“The appeal panel finds … Dr. Liedeman’s opinion to be persuasive, in particular, given the U.S. Military treatment of the claimed condition in similar circumstances,” said the new decision.

“Dr. Liedeman has carefully reviewed the medical history, the veteran’s exposure to burn pits while in Afghanistan and available medical literature. She concluded that there was a link between burn pit chemicals and testicular cancer. Accordingly, the appeal panel will resolve any doubt in this regard in the veteran’s favour.”

Veterans Affairs Canada denied the soldier’s first claim in April of 2022 because “the evidence did not indicate that any service-related factors caused, contributed to, or aggravated the condition of cancer of the left testicle,” said the new decision.

Last August, the Veterans Review and Appeal Board also denied him compensation because he “did not include a credible medical opinion supporting entitlement.”

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