The VA denied the veteran's widow's claim for service connection for the cause of his death, stating that it was not caused by any incident of service and denying her tobacco-related claim as a matter of law due to the change in law.
The deciding factor: The veteran died from lung cancer which began many years after service. The VA found no evidence linking the cancer to service or tobacco use in service.
- Claimed conditions
- Lung cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 26, 2002
- Citation
- 0202805
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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0202805.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's liver, lung, brain, and bone cancers in relation to his service, including exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for COPD, congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, lung cancer, thyroid cancer, and hypertension due to inadequate medical opinions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and remanded several service connection claims due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of death, finding that toxic exposure during service contributed substantially or materially to the Veteran's cause of death.
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