The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma and actinic keratosis as secondary to his service-connected dermatitis.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that there was no established relationship between neurodermatitis (the service-connected condition) and squamous cell carcinoma or actinic keratosis, which were found to be usually due to excessive sunlight radiation exposure during the patient's lifetime.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma, actinic keratosis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 30, 2003
- Citation
- 0301926
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 0301926.
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 squamous cell carcinoma, actinic keratosis, GERD, and Barrett's esophagus due to insufficient evidence regarding their relationship to in-service sun exposure or service-connected hypertension.
- Partly granted
The appeal for service connection for skin cancer was dismissed due to untimeliness, while the claim for squamous cell carcinoma was granted.
- Partly granted
The Board dismissed the claim for service connection for headaches and remanded claims for service connection for various other conditions, including open angle glaucoma, sensorineural hearing loss, asthma, heart disease, bladder cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma, finding that the Veteran's condition is related to his active service, including conceded in-service exposure to Agent Orange.
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