Lung cancer Board decisions

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining an opinion on whether the veteran's lung cancer is related to his military service due to asbestos exposure.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection of lung cancer, finding no evidence of asbestos exposure in service and concluding that the condition was not incurred or aggravated by service.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for the cause of her husband's death and for Chapter 35 dependents' educational assistance. The veteran died from metastatic lung cancer, which was not service-connected.

The Board has determined that the cause of the veteran's death was not related to service-connected conditions, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death.

The Board has ordered additional development to determine if the veteran's lung cancer, which caused his death in May 1996, is related to exposure to Agent Orange during service in Vietnam. The case will be remanded for further review.

The Board denied the appellant's claims of service connection for the cause of death and basic eligibility for VA dependents' educational assistance due to lack of evidence linking any diagnosed condition, including asbestos exposure, to military service.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and lung cancer as due to asbestos exposure, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The veteran's death was due to lung cancer, which is a presumptive condition for radiation-exposed veterans. The appellant received payment under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) for her husband's death. Due to the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 2004, she is now eligible for DIC payments after receiving RECA payments.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death due to lung cancer and esophageal cancer, finding that these cancers were not related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected tuberculosis did not cause or contribute to his death from lung cancer. The appellant is therefore denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death.

The Board found that the veteran's cause of death, metastatic lung cancer, was not related to service or any in-service radiation exposure. The claim for service connection for the cause of death due to ionizing radiation exposure was denied.

The veteran's lung cancer was not found to be service-connected due to exposure to herbicides, and the claim for DIC based on this finding was denied. However, a change in law allowed for retroactive consideration of the veteran's death as presumptive service-connected starting from January 1, 2002.

The Board has determined that the veteran's lung cancer, a presumptively service-connected condition, contributed to his death. The claim for Dependents' Educational Assistance under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35 is also granted.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected PTSD played a material causal role in his continued cigarette smoking after service, which led to his fatal lung cancer. Therefore, the requirements for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death have been met.

The VA determined that the veteran's cause of death, lung cancer, was not related to his service and therefore denied his claim for service connection for cause of death.

The Board denied the appellant's request for an earlier effective date for DIC benefits, finding that the claim was not filed within one year of the veteran's death and that the earliest possible effective date is March 21, 1994.

The Board found that the veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and thus denied his claim for service connection for the cause of death. The DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 were also denied as there is no evidence showing the veteran had been continuously rated totally disabling for at least ten years prior to his death.

The Board has determined that the veteran's postoperative residuals of pneumonectomy due to service-connected lung cancer warrant a 100% evaluation, effective January 14, 2002.

The Board found that the veteran did not have cardiorespiratory disease or lung cancer during service, and there was no evidence linking these conditions to his death. Therefore, the claim for service connection for cause of death is denied.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, finding that the veteran did not meet the criteria for eligibility as his service-connected disabilities were rated totally disabling but he was not entitled to compensation due to a VA decision.