The Board found that the veteran's postoperative residuals of clear cell odontogenic carcinoma are not service connected, as there is no evidence to support a finding that nicotine dependence caused his cancer.
The deciding factor: The VA Chief of Oncology opined that there was no relationship between tobacco use and the onset of the veteran's preexisting benign tumor which later became cancerous.
- Claimed conditions
- postoperative residuals of clear cell odontogenic carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 2, 2005
- Citation
- 0502487
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · 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 0502487.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for postoperative residuals of clear cell odontogenic carcinoma and nicotine dependence, finding that the conditions did not have onset in service or were not related to tobacco use.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Granted
The Veteran's major depressive disorder is found to be caused by his service-connected low back and radiculopathy disabilities, which prevent him from doing enjoyable activities and daily living tasks.
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