The Board denied the reopening of the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death due to lack of new and material evidence, as the claim is subject to a statute that prohibits granting service connection based on tobacco use during service.
The deciding factor: The appellant submitted new evidence but it was not considered material because it did not establish that the veteran’s lung cancer was caused by nicotine addiction developed during service.
- Claimed conditions
- Lung Cancer
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 30, 2004
- Citation
- 0408158
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,293 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0408158.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, lung cancer, was not related to his active duty service and therefore service connection for the cause of death is denied.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim of service connection for GERD has been readjudicated due to the submission of relevant new evidence.,The Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral eye condition, headaches, low back condition, lung cancer, and Parkinson's disease with tremors have also been readjudicated due to the submission of relevant new evidence.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's eligibility for the VA Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) was remanded due to inadequate medical opinion and insufficient notice. The Board found that the Veteran required personal care services due to his chronic conditions, including lymphoma, congestive heart failure, lung cancer, and decreased mobility.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate rationale in a previous VA examination and missing records. The claim will be reconsidered with new evidence.
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