Wesley Black knew he might die in combat when he was sent in 2010 with the Vermont National Guard to serve in Afghanistan, but the threat to his life followed him home.

Black, 33, is dying of colon cancer caused by toxic smoke from the trash the military burned right outside his combat outpost. The practice of using burn pits to dispose trash during deployments was widespread despite evidence that the military was alerted of possible health risks as early as 2006.

Black is among an estimated 3.5 million service members — around 10,000 of them in Vermont — who breathed the smoke from burn pits the military used to dispose of trash, fuel, batteries, even body parts, during their deployment. But Black is one of a small fraction of veterans who reported getting sick that have been able to convince U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to recognize the effects of the exposure as a combat-related illness.

“There was a long-standing joke with some of my friends — it was delay, deny and hope you die,” he said.

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Contact Jess Aloe at 802-660-1874 or jaloe@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @jess_aloe