Statement of Principles concerning malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site No. 44 of 2004

Statement of Principles

concerning

MALIGNANT NEOPLASM OF UNKNOWN PRIMARY SITE

Instrument No. 44 of 2004 as amended

made under section 196B(2) of the

Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986

This compilation was prepared on 22 July 2011 taking into account Amendment of Statement of Principles concerning MALIGNANT NEOPLASM OF UNKNOWN PRIMARY SITE (Instrument No. 69 of 2011)

Prepared by the Repatriation Medical Authority Secretariat, Brisbane

Statement of Principles

concerning

MALIGNANT NEOPLASM OF UNKNOWN PRIMARY SITE

for the purposes of the

Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986

and

Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004

1. This Statement of Principles is determined by the Repatriation Medical Authority under subsection 196B(2) of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (the VEA).

Kind of injury, disease or death

2. (a) This Statement of Principles is about malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site and death from malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site.

(b)              For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, "malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site" means a metastatic malignant neoplasm for which the site of origin cannot be determined after a complete history, physical examination and appropriate investigations have been carried out.  This definition excludes soft tissue sarcoma and malignant melanoma.

(c)               Malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site attracts ICD-10-AM code C80.

(d)              In the application of this Statement of Principles, the definition of "malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site" is that given at paragraph 2(b) above.

Basis for determining the factors

3. The Repatriation Medical Authority is of the view that there is sound medical-scientific evidence that indicates that malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site and death from malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site can be related to relevant service rendered by veterans, members of Peacekeeping Forces, or members of the Forces under the VEA, or members under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (the MRCA).

Factors that must be related to service

4. Subject to clause 6, at least one of the factors set out in clause 5 must be related to the relevant service rendered by the person.

Factors

5. The factor that must as a minimum exist before it can be said that a reasonable hypothesis has been raised connecting malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site or death from malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site with the circumstances of a person’s relevant service is:

(a)                smoking at least ten pack years of cigarettes or the equivalent thereof in other tobacco products before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site, and where smoking commenced at least five years before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site; or

(b)               drinking at least 250 kilograms of alcohol before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site, where drinking alcohol commenced at least ten years before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site; or

(c)                having received a cumulative equivalent dose of at least 0.1 sievert of ionising radiation to the body at least five years before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site; or; or

(d)               inability to obtain appropriate clinical management for malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site.

Factors that apply only to material contribution or aggravation

6. Paragraph 5(d) applies only to material contribution to, or aggravation of, malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site where the person’s malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site was suffered or contracted before or during (but not arising out of) the person’s relevant service.

Inclusion of Statements of Principles

7. In this Statement of Principles if a relevant factor applies and that factor includes an injury or disease in respect of which there is a Statement of Principles then the factors in that last mentioned Statement of Principles apply in accordance with the terms of that Statement of Principles.

Other definitions

8.                  For the purposes of this Statement of Principles:

 "alcohol" is measured by the alcohol consumption calculations utilising the Australian Standard of ten grams of alcohol per standard alcoholic drink;

 "cumulative equivalent dose" means the total dose of ionising radiation received by the particular organ or tissue. The formula used to calculate the cumulative equivalent dose allows doses from multiple types of ionising radiation to be combined, by accounting for their differing biological effect. The unit of equivalent dose is the sievert. For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, the calculation of cumulative equivalent dose excludes doses received from normal background radiation, but includes therapeutic radiation, diagnostic radiation, cosmic radiation at high altitude, radiation from occupation-related sources and radiation from nuclear explosions or accidents;

"death from malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site" in relation to a person includes death from a terminal event or condition that was contributed to by the person’s malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site;

"ICD-10-AM code" means a number assigned to a particular kind of injury or disease in The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM), Fourth Edition, effective date of 1 July 2004, copyrighted by the National Centre for Classification in Health, Sydney, NSW, and having ISBN 1 86487 594 1;

"pack years of cigarettes, or the equivalent thereof in other tobacco products" means a calculation of consumption where one pack year of cigarettes equals twenty tailor made cigarettes per day for a period of one calendar year, or 7300 cigarettes. One tailor made cigarette approximates one gram of tobacco or one gram of cigar or pipe tobacco by weight. One pack year of tailor made cigarettes equates to 7300 cigarettes, or 7.3kg of smoking tobacco by weight. Tobacco products means either cigarettes, pipe tobacco or cigars smoked, alone or in any combination;

"relevant service" means:

(a) operational service under the VEA; or

(b) peacekeeping service under the VEA; or

(c)               hazardous service under the VEA; or

(d)              warlike service under the MRCA; or

(e)               non-warlike service under the MRCA;

"terminal event" means the proximate or ultimate cause of death and includes:

(a) pneumonia;

(b) respiratory failure;

(c) cardiac arrest;

(d) circulatory failure; or

(f)                cessation of brain function;

Notes to Statement of Principles concerning malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site (Instrument No. 44 of 2004)

The Statement of Principles concerning malignant neoplasm of unknown primary site (Instrument No. 44 of 2004) in force under section 196B(2) of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986, as shown in this compilation is amended as indicated in the Tables below.

Table of Instruments

Table of Amendments