Table 1:
Comments of sickness or health issues.
| Neurological |
| Migraines |
| Insomnia |
| Vertigo |
| Sensory disruptions (i.e., blurred vision, tinnitus, taste/smell) |
| Cognition |
| Poor concentration |
| Mood changes, depression |
| Recall disruption |
| Word and sentence formation |
| Respiratory-related |
| Cough (productive and dry) |
| Chronic sinusitis, rhinitis, bronchitis |
| Lung-tissue scarring |
| Asthma |
| Shortness of breath |
| Immune System |
| Autoimmune conditions (unknown) |
| Chronic state of inflammation |
| Cancers |
| Skin (Melanoma, Basal Cell) |
| Reproductive (Cervical, testicular, uterine, ovarian) |
| Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin’s, Hodgkin’s, Mantle cell) |
| Leukemia (Myeloid, Myeloma, Lymphoblastic) |
| Breast (ductal, in situ DCIS) |
| Renal (Bladder, kidney) |
| Endocrine (Thyroid, Pancreatic) |
| Brain (Glioblastoma) |
| Gastrointestinal (colon, rectal, stomach, bile duct, esophageal) |
| Connective tissue & bone (Sarcoma, Rhabdomyosarcoma, Ewings) |
| Lung (small-cell, sarcoma, mesothelioma, bronchus, intrathoracic) |
| Skin |
| Vitiligo |
| Blistering |
| Chronic infections/prolonged healing |
| Psoriasis |
| Dermatopathy lymphadenitis |
| Dermatopathy lymphadenopathy |
| Exposure |
| Heavy metals (Arsenic, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Mercury, Sulfur, Uranium) |
| Human waste/bodily fluids |
| White phosphorus (mortar/ordnance), mustard gas, Sarin, Depleted Uranium |
| Smoke and Soot from burning waste, explosions, IED/VBIED/RPG blasts, leaded gasoline, local pollution, small particulates from dust storms |
| Fumes from heavy machinery, aviation, military vehicles |
| Asbestos from local housing |
| Sulfur and lead from gunfire |
| Qualitative, Subjective Experiences (During, Post-Deployment) |
| Got sicker and slower to recover |
| Nose/throat felt not right, and I stayed very close to the burn pit |
| Having difficulty breathing |
| Everything was bad. Food. Smoke. Dust. Sandstorms almost all the time. |
| All of us felt sick. From smoke. From food. Not sleeping. Not eating. Vomiting and nauseous. |
| Live too far to get help |
| Didn’t know what was happening to me when I returned home after my first deployment |
| Feeling sicker at home |
| Feeling sick after about one month on base in Ballad during first deployment |
| The smell was so bad that my nose felt numb |
| Worried about my children when I am gone |
| Bases caused ill health/diseases |
| Chemical exposure was the key behind the illnesses |
| Too confused about experts’ opinions and uncertain how to make decisions |
| Cannot pinpoint the problem, but the body is not right |
| I am feeling weak |
| I cannot run anymore after my first deployment |
| I am having hard time breathing, and this was not the case before my first deployment. |
| I tried to ignore it even though I knew something was not right with me |
| My doctor gave me so many meds, for my pain, for insomnia, for PTSD, for headaches, for nausea |
| I didn’t know where to go and get help even when I was not healing properly. My cold lasted months |
| I worked long hours every day, 16-plus per day |
| I slept in a sleeping bag the first few weeks when I got to Balad |
| It was hot, and lots of sandstorms |
| I inhaled dust and sand during the first deployment |