The goal of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Million Veterans Program is to collect blood samples of at least a million veterans, and use it to research illnesses. The veterans' blood samples could hold the key to understanding causes and discovering treatments and cures for myriad illnesses. The VA is looking at some 750,000 genetic markers that medical researchers believe could be linked to illnesses that plague veterans, ranging from cancers to heart disease, kidney disease to post-traumatic stress disorder. Veterans may volunteer for the project at a number of VA sites across the country. For more information, visit the VA Million Veteran Program website.
For more on veteran benefits, visit the Military.com Benefits Center.
