Sick on the Navajo Nation, a family waits years for a diagnosis
WINDOW ROCK
The children of the late Howard Billiman Jr. grew up in Sawmill drinking water that, on bright days, carried what looked like a film of oil on its surface.
Decades later they are scattered around the Navajo Nation and its border towns, and nearly all of them are sick. They share stomach problems, removed gallbladders, growths and unexplained pain, and a years-long struggle to get a clear diagnosis from a health care system they say keeps sending them in circles.
Howard Billiman Jr. was a Navajo Code Talker and a uranium miner. His daughter Maggie Billiman said he died of cancer after years of exposure to radioactive material. Before he died, she said, he asked her to find a cure for cancer.
“That’s what dad went through. So I think that’s where we all got sick,” she said.
Published June 25, 2026 at 4:12 a.m. Updated June 25, 2026 at 2:04 p.m.
A correction was made on June 25, 2026: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified the late Navajo Code Talker as Sam Billiman. The correct name is Howard Billiman Jr.
To read the full article, please see the June 25, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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