LI Congressman, Vietnam Veterans Demand VA To Take Action Against War-Related Cancer

ROCKY POINT, NY — A U.S. congressman from Long Island is calling for urgent action to expand Veterans Affairs care and support for Vietnam veterans suffering from bile duct cancer — cholangiocarcinoma — linked to their military service, according to a news release.

Congressman Nick LaLota (R — Suffolk County), a Navy veteran and member of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, was joined by Brookhaven Councilwoman Jane Bonner, Vietnam veteran Gerald Wiggins, members of Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 11, and members of Rocky Point VFW Post 6249.

The event followed the April 7 U.S. House of Representatives passage of LaLota’s bipartisan Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act, which directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct a comprehensive study on the connection between liver fluke exposure during the Vietnam War and bile duct cancer in Vietnam veterans compared to veterans who served in other conflicts. The bill passed the House unanimously, with a vote of 411–0.

"The facts are clear: Vietnam War veterans who served in-theater are 30 percent more likely to develop bile duct cancer than those who served elsewhere," LaLota stated. "Yet the VA still refuses to acknowledge the connection. That must change."

A corrective bill has been passed in the House of Representatives twice. Wiggins walked into LaLota's office two years ago, the congressman said.

"[Wiggins] said, 'Nick, you’ve got to step up for the rest of us,'" LaLota said. "And we did. Now it’s time for the Senate — and the VA — to do the same. The VA could fix this with the stroke of a pen. They don’t need another study. But if that’s what it takes, we’ll keep pushing until this bill becomes law and the VA finally does right by our Vietnam Veterans."

Wiggins, a Vietnam veteran and Suffolk County resident in attendance, has been "instrumental" in sparking legislative attention to the issue. He shared his personal story of delayed diagnosis, limited treatment options, and the emotional toll of navigating a system that has not formally recognized his illness as service-related.

"The disease lasts for 30, 40, 50 years," Wiggins said. "They don’t know how or why in your bile duct. It releases, goes to your liver. By the time you know about it, you’re dead. They say, 'Well, the Vietnam veterans are alcoholics and drug addicts, so that’s why their liver went bad.' There are 800,000 veterans in New York State. There are 134,000 Veterans on Long Island. If you push this bill through, you’re a hero. Can someone explain to me in the Senate now why you can’t pass this bill? If 800,000 Veterans come together in Washington, D.C., like they did in the ’60s and ’70s — maybe something will go through. I’m positive. I’m still positive. I have a disease in me that, once it hits another organ, I could die. Right now it’s in my body, but I’m still alive."

To read the full text of the bipartisan Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act, click here.

LaLota initially introduced the Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act during the 118th Congress. It passed the House in September 2024. The Senate failed to vote on the act, and the progress reset once the new Congress was sworn in.

The Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act seeks to address the gap by requiring the VA, in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to conduct a comprehensive study on the prevalence of liver fluke infections among Vietnam veterans. This legislation aims to ensure that Vietnam Veterans receive the care and recognition they deserve for this debilitating condition.