The Board found that the veteran's cause of death, metastatic pancreatic cancer, was not caused by or substantially contributed to by a service-connected disability. The preponderance of evidence did not support a finding that diabetes mellitus (a service-connected condition) caused or contributed to the veteran's death.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that while there is statistical correlation between diabetes and pancreatic cancer, it was speculative to determine if the veteran was one of the few predisposed to pancreatic cancer due to diabetes. The VA physician opinions were negative regarding a causal relationship.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic pancreatic cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2004
- Citation
- 0400246
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,500 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0400246.
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Related decisions
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The Board has determined that the Veteran's metastatic pancreatic cancer, which was service-connected, substantially and materially contributed to his death. Therefore, service connection for cause of death is granted.
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The Veteran's death was due to service-connected cause, specifically his metastatic pancreatic cancer which is presumed to be related to burn pit exposure in the Persian Gulf. The claim for service connection for the cause of death is granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's pancreatic neoplasm and metastatic pancreatic cancer are granted service connection.,The cause of the Veteran's death, respiratory arrest due to metastatic pancreatic cancer, is also granted service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death is attributed to metastatic pancreatic cancer, which the Board finds was caused by his exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune during service. Service connection for cause of death is granted.
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