The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death due to esophageal cancer and nicotine dependence resulting from smoking in service, finding no direct evidence linking these conditions to service.
The deciding factor: There was insufficient evidence to establish a link between the veteran's esophageal cancer or nicotine dependence resulting from smoking in service and his death.
- Claimed conditions
- sepsis, chronic obstructive respiratory disease (CORD), moderately differentiated squamous cell cancer of the hard palate and distal third of the esophagus, intestinal obstruction
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 31, 2002
- Citation
- 0205635
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 0205635.
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 claims for service connection for cause of death and dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) benefits due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding the appeal for service connection for cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and Dependency and Indemity Compensation (DIC) due to a need for additional evidence.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for sepsis caused by an infected surgical wound, secondary to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II. The Board denied a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for cause of death to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error related to the Veteran's exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
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