Question:

I had prostate cancer from agent orange. I also developed diabetes II and total erectile dysfunction (ED)  due to the cancer and treatments. I am up many times during the night and I get foot tingling. Regardless of this, they are deceasing my disability to 40%. Don't they take into consideration that my ED has never recovered and that I have other residual issues, or am I just automatically decreased to 40% because I do not wear diapers? What about the ED and my mental stress from all of this?

Jim's Reply:

The Schedule For Rating Disabilities is the set of regulations that tells raters what they're allowed to do. These rules and regs are derived from law that exists in Title 38. I urge you to take the time to explore each of those as they describe the process you're being subjected to.
 

While I agree with you, the regulations that the rater must follow doesn't. Once you have been successfully treated for service connected prostate cancer, you no longer have cancer so you can't be rated 100%. You will be rated for the residual effects of having had the cancer and treatments. The residual effects are usually leakage of urine requiring absorbent pads and erectile dysfunction.
 

Ratings are usually 20%, 40% or 60% depending on the number of pads you use in a day. Erectile dysfunction is rated separately and will earn you 10% if you claimed it along with the residuals you're experiencing. You must make the claim for ED or the VA won't automatically rate it.
 

Again, I agree with you about the post-procedure effects of having had a cancer and having to suffer treatments. However, as you read through the rating schedule you'll see that VA doesn't consider mental health issues as a part of the process and once again, you must make that claim formally.
 

I urge veterans to go ahead and do just that...file a claim for the mental health issues you suffer during service connected cancer treatments. You may need an IMO from a provider like http://www.veteranspsychevaluations.com/index.html but it is certainly possible to win such claims.

Good luck sir.