The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and also denied dependency and indemnity compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 due to lack of new and material evidence, as well as failure to meet the criteria for benefits under that section.
The deciding factor: The additional evidence received since the April 1997 decision did not provide new or significant information that could reopen the claim for service connection for cause of death. The appellant's testimony regarding exposure to Agent Orange was not corroborated by available records, and there was no indication of Vietnam service.
- Claimed conditions
- cancer of both lungs
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 10, 2003
- Citation
- 0327333
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 0327333.
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
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