Taking Responsibility
I came across an interesting biographical vignette that I thought you might enjoy as well.
Admiral Zumwalt died on 2 January 2000 at the Duke University Medical Center, Durham North Carolina after suffering with mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the lungs caused by his exposure to asbestos while serving in the Navy.
He had two sons. One of them was Elmo R. Zumwalt III, who died of cancer in 1988, possibly due to Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. Elmo III was stricken with lymphoma in 1983, thirteen years after leaving the Navy for a career in law. In 1985, he was also found to have Hodgkin’s disease. Admiral Zumwalt said he felt his son’s illness was most definitely due to Agent Orange. He also mentioned that his grandson suffered from very severe learning disabilities that could possibly be traced to it as well.
The Admiral mentioned that he felt terrible guilt and shame over his decision to have US Navy planes use the infamous defoliant during the war. It should be noted that the younger Zumwalt said he bore his father no bitterness and did not blame him. Admiral Zumwalt and his son wrote a book called “My Father, My Son” where they discussed their family tragedy. The book was adapted for the 1988 made-for-TV movie starring Karl Malden.
After treatment in a number of hospitals, Elmo III went to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, in Seattle, where he received a bone marrow transplant from his sister Mouzetta, whose tissues fortunately matched his well enough for this treatment to be feasible. Results were promising initially but he died in 1988 at the age of 42. During his son’s illness in the early 1980s, Admiral Zumwalt was very active in lobbying Congress to establish a national registry of bone marrow donors. This was ultimately a disinterested act, since his son was able to receive a transplant from his own sister, but many patients don’t have close relatives who are able and willing to help in this heroic way. His efforts were a major factor in the founding of the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) in July 1986. Admiral Zumwalt was the first chairman of the NMDP’s Board of Directors.
Sources: Wikipedia, The New York Times
I admire people who are big enough to take responsibility, admit when they have made a mistake and try to make amends. Rest in peace, Admiral. The National Marrow Donor Program saves many lives each year.
Over the years I have heard from many members who have served during the Vietnam war era and had been exposed to Agent Orange. Only recently has the VA accepted possible connection between CLL and Agent Orange exposure. If episodic exposure to Agent Orange can cause CLL, I wonder how many Vietnamese are out there with CLL (or other hematological cancers) after having been liberally doused with this nasty defoliant. CLL Topics has readership in more than 80 countries - but Vietnam does not figure large, possibly because of linguistic barriers.
Be well,
Chaya
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3 comments on "The Buck Stopped With Him"
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackI have wondered about the connection of the Navy with the National Donor Registry.
This is my first cyber check on how you two are doing since leaving for the Mayo Clinic sponsored “Living with Blood Cancer Symposium” in Chicago. A great bunch of the most open and caring docs one could hope to find. My thoughts were with Harvey through out the Conference. It is a great relief to hear that the situation may be under control now that it is identified.
As a Viet-Nam vet certified by the VA as Agent Orange CLL disabled, your post encapsulates so poignantly the human condition. Basically good people enfolded in the actions of abstract policy, justified by narrow interests and sold to the people through the manipulative techniques that use fear and appeals to patriotism.
On a personal level I wanted no part of that war but went and did my “job” my “duty”. Though I became an early member of Viet-Nam Vets Against the War I accept the karma of my disease. Having drawn that bad card I cannot help but wrestle with conflicting emotion that I have lived a good long time disease free and am in pretty good health still, knowing that many Vietnamese must be suffering with little support. I have so much to fall back on; my caring wife, friends, a self created environment of natural beauty in which to live, the opportunity to research through the Internet, good health insurance and not least of all you two, Chaya and P.C. for guides on my journey. I too wonder of the insidious afflictions our nation has left on the people of Viet-Nam and by extension what we are doing to the people in Iraq.
Life is certainly a complex tapestry as epitomized by Chaya’s gift to us all of her proactive and creative efforts that would not be but for P.C.’s misfortune in getting CLL.
Before I wander too far on this path …..
May the wellness curve trend sharply upward!
Chaya,
I send you and your husband my best wishes for good health and peaceful minds. I pray that he continues to improve.
I am newly diagnosed. At first I was too scared to do much research. Now that I am over the initial shock I have been reading everything on your web site. It has been so helpful to me. Knowledge is power and I applaud you for all your hard work that benefits so many. You have such a gift in your ability to gather information and teach others. You and your husband deserve the best. You have made this nightmare much more bearable for me. THANK YOU