Gulf War Veterans Disability Claims for Brain Cancer
New research shows an increase in brain cancer deaths for veterans exposed to the nerve agent Sarin in Gulf War I. Over 100,000 soldiers were exposed to chemical warfare in Iraq during the first Gulf War. According to the new study, they now have double the risk of dying from brain cancer compared to the 250,000 soldiers who were not exposed. And this information is just coming out now - some 14 years after their exposure. Makes you wonder what our current soldiers in Iraq have to worry about when they hopefully come home for good...
We generally know the great sacrifices our soldiers give during war time, including the ultimate sacrifice. However, we all should remember the overwhelming challenges some face when they come home. Whether it is the staggering divorce rate, learning to walk or eat with new limbs, PTSD , personal bankruptcy or the cruelly indifferent attitude of those not brave enough to serve, our veterans face huge obstacles. If one needs the Hollywood version to get the picture, rent the DVD's of "The Best Years of Their Lives", "Coming Home" or "Born on the 4th of July" and see if you don't think more should be done to ease their transition home and protect their health.
As a veteran myself, I take great pride knowing that my law firm has been helping veterans with service related disability and Social Security disability claims for many years now. These are not lucrative claims for lawyers, but they are very rewarding. David Tobias, our partner in charge of VA disability claims, is currently fighting an unusual claim involving cancer of the larynx (vocal chords) for a Korean War era veteran due to radiation exposure at a top secret atomic weapons assembly plant. Just getting the official records from the Department of the Army regarding the doses of radiation the veteran was exposed to was a battle. Now we have to prove that the exposure caused the larynx cancer. The Veterans Administration has fought us all the way, and the case is currently pending before the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Washington, DC. Personally, I think the VA underestimated the scrappy ex-wrestler from Long Island (Dave Tobias) and we are hoping to make some good law later this year. Let's hope we don't have to fight similar battles with the VA regarding these new brain cancer cases in the future.
Im a PGW veteran looking at the prospect of failing health and indigency as i stay alive. I live in NC, which could care less if I get any help. What advice can you give me. Thanks!
I am hoping you can help us. My husband served during Desert Storm. At
that time he had written me several letters concerning problems he was
having with severe pain in his right shoulder. He was sent to the medic
several times and put on light duty due to the problem. He had spent most
of his time overseas loading and unloading trucks and recovering disabled
vehicles from the desert.
Within 6 months of arriving home and returning to his job in construction,
he was so severly disabled that he couldn't even lift his arm to open the
front door to go to work. He saw a doctor and had surgery on the shoulder.
The doctor told him that severe injury and damage had been done to the
shoulder due to all the heavy lifting and the extreme conditions in the
desert.
As soon as we were able, we contacted the VA concerning the problem. He
filed a claim while living in North Carolina, which took forever to process
and was ultimately denied. The military was unable to located his medical
records for the time he served overseas and ruled against him because
there was a prior injury to his shoulder (he broke his clavical in the
early 80's) and they said there was no proof that his condition was caused
or arrgravated due to anything that happened during his service in Desert
Storm.
We have made several attempts over the last 12 years to locate his records,
finally, he has recieved these records, which clearly document his many
visits and treatments for injury during Desert Storm. We also have the
paper work from his initial claim stating the reason for the initial denial.
My husband and I have 5 children, I have watched him continue to work in
construction because it is the only way he knows to support his children,
but inevitably, he has to take several weeks, sometimes months off at a time
to allow his shoulder to heal after working heavy jobs. He was told after
his surgery in 1992 not to do construction any more, but as I stated, we
have a family to support.
At this point, we are not sure what is the best route to follow. We are
certain however, that we should have a lawyer help us this time. We found
your website and hope that with your experience in these matters you might
be willing to take the case. We currently reside in a small town in Western
New York State and are fearful that our local lawyers may not have the
experience necessary to handle this.
We would greatly appreciate any assistance you could give us. Thank you for
your time and consideration in this matter.
Sincerely,
Susan & Richard Macool
607-324-2664