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Denied

The veteran's cause of death was listed as lung cancer, which the appellant claimed was caused by his service-connected anxiety disorder. However, the Board found that there is no evidence to support a link between the veteran's service and his lung cancer, nor does the law allow for service connection in this case due to the prohibition on compensation for diseases or deaths resulting from tobacco use.

The deciding factor: The appellant failed to provide sufficient evidence linking the veteran’s service-connected anxiety disorder to his fatal lung cancer, which is not a compensable condition under VA laws and regulations.

Claimed conditions
lung cancer
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
December 15, 2000
Citation
0032773

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 0032773.

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