Prostate cancer decisions — 2015

The Board found that the Veteran's current back disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service and denied his claim. The prostate cancer claim is addressed in the REMAND portion of this decision.

The Board found that the Veteran's prostate cancer is in remission and does not warrant a reduction of his disability rating. For the period after November 1, 2013, the Veteran was granted a compensable rating for service-connected prostate cancer.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for coronary artery disease, prostate cancer, hypertension, residuals of left broken collar bone, and left hip scarring. The evidence did not establish that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service, including exposure to herbicides.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's prostate cancer is related to his service at Camp Lejeune, and thus grants service connection for prostate cancer. The issue of testicular cancer remains pending as it was not addressed in this decision.

The Veteran's prostate cancer is being reviewed for service connection, with a presumption of exposure to herbicides. The VA has not yet verified the Veteran's claimed exposure in Thailand, Japan and Guam.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to evaluate his service-connected residuals of prostate cancer with robotic prostatectomy, including erectile dysfunction and bladder infections. The claim will be readjudicated after the examination.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment, warranting a TDIU.

The Veteran's prostate cancer and lung cancer are granted service connection based on presumed exposure to herbicides. His erectile dysfunction is secondary to his service-connected prostate cancer, and his brain cancer is secondary to his service-connected lung cancer.

The Board found that the Veteran did not have exposure to herbicides in Vietnam or Thailand, and thus could not establish service connection for prostate cancer as secondary to such exposure.

The Board has remanded the case for further development to assess the Veteran's employability due to his service-connected disabilities, including PTSD and prostate cancer.

The Veteran's prostate cancer is not service connected as it did not develop during his active duty or within one year of separation. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a presumption of herbicide exposure in Vietnam, and there is no direct evidence linking the condition to service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are so severe that they preclude him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment, warranting a TDIU.

The Veteran's combined disability rating meets the schedular criteria for a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities, which include PTSD, prostate cancer, and tinnitus. The preponderance of evidence shows that these conditions are of such severity as to prevent him from engaging in substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the severity of his prostate cancer disability. The TDIU claim is also inextricably intertwined with this issue.

The Veteran's renal cancer, prostate cancer, and erectile dysfunction were not shown to be related to service or any service-connected disability. The claims are denied.

The Veteran's prostate cancer residuals are restored to a 100% rating effective December 1, 2013. The reduction from 100% to 20% was not warranted as the evidence did not reflect improvement in his service-connected condition.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim of service connection for prostate cancer and granted it. The Board also found that the Veteran had in-country service in Vietnam, which establishes exposure to herbicides, and thus grants service connection for coronary artery disease as a presumptively linked condition.

The Board finds that the discontinuance of the 100 percent evaluation for prostate cancer residuals effective January 1, 2011 was proper as there is no evidence of active malignancy or recurrence after this date.

The Board found that the Veteran's prostate cancer and diabetes mellitus, type II, were not incurred or aggravated in service. The evidence did not support a finding of exposure to herbicides during his service in Thailand.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Veteran was not granted a separate evaluation for tinnitus or a left calf scar, nor did he receive an effective date prior to August 3, 2009.