Health Information Summary for CF Members
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The following information was issued on behalf of the Canadian Forces Surgeon General. It was intended to assist CF medical staff in placing the health risk in context and to serve as a direct reference for concerned CF members who desire more detailed and specific information than is available from existing herbicide and dioxin information sheets produced by various health authorities.
This document summarizes the findings of scientific studies and reviews specific to Agent Orange or otherwise relevant to recent concerns regarding human exposure and health effects of unregistered herbicides tested at CFB Gagetown June 14-16, 1966, and June 21-24, 1967. This document is organized into four main sections. The first three sections ( "GENERAL INFORMATION" , "HEALTH EFFECTS" , and "FATE IN THE ENVIRONMENT" ) provide background information. Much of this background information is related to the United States use of Agent Orange and other herbicides during the Vietnam War and the scientific study of exposed U.S. Vietnam veterans. This background information is necessary to provide context for the discussion in section four ( "HEALTH EFFECTS FROM SPRAYING IN GAGETOWN" ) of health risks related to the testing of Agent Orange and other unregistered herbicides at CFB Gagetown June 14-16, 1966, and June 21-24, 1967.
DND has also used other (registered) herbicides at CFB Gagetown and across Canada since the 1950s. This broader use of registered herbicides will be reviewed over the next several years and relevant health information will be provided separately in the future. Although this document focuses on the testing of unregistered herbicides at CFB Gagetown June 14-16, 1966, and June 21-24, 1967, parts of this document would also be relevant to the discussion of potential health effects from chemical exposures in general (see especially "Under what circumstances might Agent Orange or its ingredients lead to health effects?" ).
- What is Agent Orange?
- What is Agent Purple?
- What is TCDD?
- How much is a part per million (ppm)?
- How much is a part per trillion (ppt)?
- How much TCDD did Agent Orange and Agent Purple contain?
- What health effects are associated with Agent Orange?
- What is the difference between an "association" and a "cause"?
- What are chance, bias, and confounding?
- Under what circumstances might Agent Orange or its ingredients lead to health effects?
- What are the health risks associated with large exposures to TCDD?
- Have Vietnam veterans in general been harmed by Agent Orange?
- Have Army Chemical Corps Vietnam veterans been harmed by Agent Orange?
- Have Air Force Ranch Hand Vietnam veterans been harmed by Agent Orange?
- Why have disability pensions been awarded in the US and Canada for illnesses associated with Agent Orange?
- What happens to Agent Orange after it is sprayed?
- What happens to Agent Orange after it lands on the ground?
- Is Agent Orange the only source of TCDD?
- Can TCDD be measured in our bodies?
Health Effects From Spraying in Gagetown
- How much Agent Orange was sprayed at CFB Gagetown?
- What is the health risk for CF members who were exposed to Agent Orange and Agent Purple at CFB Gagetown?
- Has the health of CF members living in PMQs or in communities near CFB Gagetown been affected by Agent Orange?
- I know of people in the communities near CFB Gagetown who are sick or dying - isn't this due to Agent Orange?
- What about other herbicides used at CFB Gagetown that contained some of the same ingredients as Agent Orange?
- What can I do to know more?
