Betty Seaman is the President and Co-Founder of Surviving Spouse – Veterans Families for Education and Awareness. She advocates for Veterans and military families affected by environmental and occupational toxic exposures, with a focus on the link between military service and lung cancer.
Her husband Jim—a naval aviator, test pilot, and lifelong nonsmoker—was diagnosed with stage 4 adenocarcinoma non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in October 2017. He died on April 20, 2018, just seven months later. He was 61 years old.
Advocacy and Media Work
In the weeks after Jim’s death, Betty uncovered a deeply troubling pattern: multiple commanding officers from one naval air station had died from cancer. Investigations revealed that Naval Air Facility Atsugi in Japan—where the family had been stationed—had an improperly operated industrial incinerator releasing dioxins at up to 90 times the safe level. Families were never formally notified.
Betty has since worked tirelessly to push for recognition of toxic exposure sites like Atsugi, following the precedent set by Camp Lejeune. Her advocacy focuses on notification, research registries, and benefits for affected military families.
Cancer touched nearly every member of her household. One daughter developed squamous cell carcinoma as a teenager. Betty herself has battled recurrent bladder cancer since 2008. None of it, she says, feels coincidental.
As a Voice of Hope in LCFA’s Breath of Honor Veteran program, Betty brings a caregiver’s perspective and an advocate’s resolve to conversations about Veterans’ lung cancer risk, the PACT Act, and the urgent need for earlier detection and accountability.
“This isn’t just about Jim. It’s about the families. The kids. The people who never even knew they were exposed.”
Key Messages
- Military toxic exposure and lung cancer are directly linked for many Veterans and their families
- Caregivers and surviving spouses are powerful voices for change
- Veterans and their families should know their PACT Act screening benefits
- Accountability and notification for toxic exposure sites can save lives
- No family should be left in the dark about the risks they faced in service to their country
