The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for lymphedema and scarring of the right lower extremity due to radiation therapy, and it is granted.
The deciding factor: The misdiagnosis of liposarcoma as a lipoma led to limited surgical excision, necessitating subsequent radiation therapy which caused lymphedema and scarring. The Board concluded that this was due to lack of proper skill or similar instance of fault on the part of VA.
- Claimed conditions
- lymphedema, scarring
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2006
- Citation
- 0609867
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,325 · Granted: 31% (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 0609867.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's lymphedema, which may be related to Agent Orange exposure or service-connected conditions.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial ratings for kidney cancer and scarring from treatment have been denied as there is no evidence of compensable residual conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's appeal is remanded due to new evidence submitted after the initial decision, which includes private dermatologist treatment records diagnosing lymphedema. The VA examiner's opinion prior to this submission was deemed inadequate.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB), including scarring, is remanded due to incomplete examination reports.
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