Researchers with The Institute of Medicine, a division of the National Academy of Sciences, announced Thursday that a type of leukemia is linked to exposure to Agent Orange. According to the institute, exposure to the herbicide, which was used during the Vietnam War in South Vietnam and Cambodia to clear dense jungle, may be associated with the development of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

The Institute of Medicine had previously found that there was not enough scientific evidence to link Agent Orange and the disorder, but researchers re-examined past studies on CLL and determined the two are associated. The Veterans Affairs Department announced that Vietnam vets with CLL would be eligible for benefits such as disability compensation in about one year. The United States military sprayed over 20 million gallons of Agent Orange on the jungles of Vietnam during the war.