The Board found that the veteran's cause of death, squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx, was not due to service or any service-connected disability. The Board also determined that this cancer did not contribute substantially or materially in producing the veteran's death.
The deciding factor: The Board concluded that there was no evidence linking the veteran's cause of death (squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx) to his military service, including exposure to ionizing radiation. The Board also found that this cancer did not contribute substantially or materially in producing the veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2006
- Citation
- 0606906
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 832 · Granted: 18% (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 0606906.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The claims for service connection and TDIU from April 1, 2015 have been granted by a VA rating decision dated April 2020. The Board has dismissed the appeal due to lack of jurisdiction as the claims are moot.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board previously denied service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx. The Court remanded the case due to insufficient reasons and bases provided by the Board regarding the potential link between in-service herbicide exposure and the cancer.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and TDIU due to a need for further medical examination regarding his squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx, which is presumed to be related to herbicide exposure during service.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx, which is a metastasis of primary laryngeal cancer. Given his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam and the presumption of service connection for respiratory cancers associated with herbicide exposure, the cause of death is presumed related to service.
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