The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death and denied DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 due to lack of evidence linking his military service or service-connected conditions to his death.
The deciding factor: The medical records did not establish a nexus between the veteran's military service, any service-connected disabilities, and his cause of death from metastatic non-small cell cancer and severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic non-small cell cancer, lung, severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 28, 2000
- Citation
- 0022829
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0022829.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to unclear documentation used as a basis for the original and amended death certificate, requiring clarification of the cause of death.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran died from non-service-connected causes and did not meet the criteria for nonservice-connected burial death benefits as he was not receiving VA service-connected compensation or pension at the time of his death.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran is seeking compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for a lung condition resulting from right thoracotomy with right upper lobe wedge resection in February 2004 at a VA Medical Center. The case has been remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining relevant treatment records and scheduling an examination.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration of the Veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death, including an evaluation of the causal relationship between any conditions he may have had during service and his death.
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