The veteran's cause of death is being remanded for additional development, including a review by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency to re-calculate his dose estimate of ionizing radiation exposure. The claim for service connection for myelodysplastic syndrome due to radiation exposure and pulmonary fibrosis will also be remanded.
The deciding factor: The case is being remanded because additional development, including a review by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) to re-calculate the dose estimate of ionizing radiation exposure, is required as per the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 and implementing regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- myelodysplastic syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Ionizing radiation
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 3, 2004
- Citation
- 0411482
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 0411482.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an increased rating for prostate cancer and a compensable rating for myelodysplastic syndrome, but granted a separate rating for fatigue as a residual symptom of the service-connected myelodysplastic syndrome.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for myelodysplastic syndrome and thrombocytopenia, as well as Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) based on the cause of the Veteran's death.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for myelodysplastic syndrome, finding that the Veteran had presumptive exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter to obtain a medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's significant conditions at the time of his death were related to his service, including any toxic exposure risk activities (TERA), and if so, whether they had a material influence on the acceleration of his death.
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