David Guttenfelder/AP Photo

Gai’s children — both with twisted limbs and confined to wheelchairs — were born in a village that was drenched with Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. She believes their health problems were caused by dioxin, a highly toxic chemical in the herbicide, which U.S. troops used to strip communist forces of ground cover and food.

Tran Van Tram, 60, stands inside his home in the village of Cam Tuyen, Vietnam. Tran Van Tram and his wife have raised four children with profound physical and mental disabilities. Each of his children appeared healthy at birth, said Tram, 61. But after a year or so, they could not roll over. They never learned to talk.

David Guttenfelder/AP Photo

Gai’s children — both with twisted limbs and confined to wheelchairs — were born in a village that was drenched with Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. She believes their health problems were caused by dioxin, a highly toxic chemical in the herbicide, which U.S. troops used to strip communist forces of ground cover and food.

Son Nguyen Tri Lam, foreground, and his sister Nguyen Thi Hang sit inside their family home in the town of Cam Lo, Vietnam. Both had their hands tied behind their backs to prevent them from biting their arms and hands and seriously hurting themselves. The two siblings were born with profound physical and mental disabilities that the family, and local officials, say were caused by their parents’ exposure to the chemical dioxin in the defoliant Agent Orange.