Statement of Principles concerning non-Hodgkin's lymphoma No. 29 of 2010

Statement of Principles

concerning

NON-HODGKIN'S LYMPHOMA

Instrument No. 29 of 2010 as amended

made under subsection 196B(3) of the

Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986

This compilation was prepared on 3 September 2014 taking into account Amendment Statement of Principles concerning NON-HODGKIN'S LYMPHOMA (Instrument No. 87 of 2014)

Prepared by the Repatriation Medical Authority Secretariat, Brisbane

Statement of Principles

concerning

NON-HODGKIN'S LYMPHOMA

No. 29 of 2010

for the purposes of the

Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986

and

Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004

Title

1. This Instrument may be cited as Statement of Principles concerning non-Hodgkin's lymphoma No. 29 of 2010.

Determination

2. The Repatriation Medical Authority under subsection 196B(3) and (8) of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (the VEA):

(a) revokes Instrument No. 38 of 2003 concerning non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; and

(b) determines in its place this Statement of Principles.

Kind of injury, disease or death

3. (a) This Statement of Principles is about non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and death from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

(b)              For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, "non-Hodgkin's lymphoma" means a heterogeneous group of malignant lymphoproliferative diseases that originate from T and B lymphocytes, which lack Reed-Sternberg cells, and present as solid tumours of the immune system. This definition includes Burkitt’s lymphoma, mycosis fungoides, adult T cell lymphoma/leukaemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma arising within parenchymal organs, and excludes myeloma, hairy cell leukaemia, Waldenström's macroglobulinaemia, and chronic lymphocytic leukaemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma.

Basis for determining the factors

4. On the sound medical-scientific evidence available, the Repatriation Medical Authority is of the view that it is more probable than not that non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and death from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma can be related to relevant service rendered by veterans 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

5. Subject to clause 7, at least one of the factors set out in clause 6 must be related to the relevant service rendered by the person.

Factors

6. The factor that must exist before it can be said that, on the balance of probabilities, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma or death from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is connected with the circumstances of a person’s relevant service is:

(a)               being infected with human immunodeficiency virus at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(b)              receiving systemic immunosuppressive drug therapy after undergoing solid organ or bone marrow transplantation, at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(c)               having an autoimmune disease from the specified list before the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(d)              for thyroid lymphoma only, having Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis, at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(e)               for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma only, having psoriasis at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(f)                for T-cell lymphoma of the small intestine only, having inflammatory bowel disease at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(g)              for hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma only, undergoing treatment with the tumour necrosis factor-alpha antagonist infliximab and thiopurine therapy (azathioprine or 6-mercaptopurine), before the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, where the first exposure occurred at least one year before the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and where that exposure has ceased, the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma occurred within five years after cessation; or

(h)              for Richter’s syndrome only, having chronic lymphocytic  leukaemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(i)                for adult T-cell leukaemia-lymphoma only, being infected with human T-cell lymphotropic virus type-1 at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(j)                for gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma only, being infected with Helicobacter pylori at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(k)              for Burkitt’s lymphoma, primary central nervous system lymphomas and extranodal nasal natural killer-T cell lymphoma only, being infected with Epstein-Barr virus at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(l)                for primary effusion lymphoma only, being infected with Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(m)            for small intestinal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma only, being infected with Campylobacter jejuni at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(n)              for ocular adnexal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma only, being infected with Chlamydia psittaci at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(o)              for cutaneous mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma only,  being infected with Borrelia burgdorferi or Borrelia afzelii, at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(p)              being infected with hepatitis C virus at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(q)              for B-cell lymphoma only, being infected with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(r)                having Hodgkin’s lymphoma within the 25 years before the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(s)               being obese for a continuous period of at least five years within the 10 years before the clinical onset of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; or

(t)                inability to obtain appropriate clinical management for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Factors that apply only to material contribution or aggravation

7. Paragraph 6(t) applies only to material contribution to, or aggravation of, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma where the person’s non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was suffered or contracted before or during (but not arising out of) the person’s relevant service.

Inclusion of Statements of Principles

8.                  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 as in force from time to time.

Other definitions

9.                  For the purposes of this Statement of Principles:

"an autoimmune disease from the specified list" means:

(a)                autoimmune haemolytic anaemia;

(b)               coeliac disease;

(c)                rheumatoid arthritis;

(d)               Sjogren’s syndrome; or

(e)                systemic lupus erythematosus;

"being obese" means an increase in body weight by way of fat accumulation which results in a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or greater.

The BMI = W/H2 and where:

W is the person’s weight in kilograms and

H is the person’s height in metres;

"death from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma" in relation to a person includes death from a terminal event or condition that was contributed to by the person’s non-Hodgkin's lymphoma;

"relevant service" means:

(a)              eligible war service (other than operational service) under the VEA; or

(b)              defence service (other than hazardous service and British nuclear test defence service) under the VEA; or

(c)              peacetime service under the MRCA;

"Richter’s syndrome" means a form of high-grade large cell lymphoma, characterised by systemic symptoms, rapid tumour growth and extra-nodal involvement, which develops in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia;

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

(a) pneumonia;

(b) respiratory failure;

(c) cardiac arrest;

(d) circulatory failure; or

(e)               cessation of brain function.

Application

10. This Instrument applies to all matters to which section 120B of the VEA or section 339 of the MRCA applies.

Date of effect

11. This Instrument takes effect from 12 May 2010.

Notes to Statement of Principles concerning non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (Instrument No. 29 of 2010)

The Statement of Principles concerning non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (Instrument No. 29 of 2010) in force under subsection 196B(3) 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