<s>[INST] I served 1 year in Vietnam. I was exposed to Agent Orange when I was boots on ground in Danang, Vietnam. I had prostate cancer later in life. I have a disability claim with the VA for being exposed to Agent Orange. My question is, how long can cancer cells lay dormant before being detected. I was told by the VA, because I never reported I had prostate cancer within the normal 1 year period after leaving the military. I didn t know I was even exposed to AG, or started having problems until many years later. I am under the impression that cancer cells like this may not be detected until many years later. Thank you, John [/INST] Hi, dairy have gone through your question. I can understand your concern.  Occupational cancer take long time to detect. There may be gap of 10 to 20 years in exposure and cancer detection.  So in varies from case to case, but it takes long times to develop cancer and detection of cancer. Hope I have answered your question, if you have doubt then I will be happy to answer. Thanks for using Chat Doctor. Wish you a very good health. </s>