The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including obtaining a new VA examination to address the etiology of the veteran's throat cancer.
The deciding factor: The January 2006 VA examiner did not provide an adequate clinical opinion regarding the cause of the veteran's throat cancer, specifically whether it is related to Agent Orange exposure or asbestos exposure in service.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma of the throat, right tonsil, right cervical lymph nodes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2006
- Citation
- 0639379
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,374 · Granted: 19% (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 0639379.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and throat is at least as likely as not related to in-service exposure to herbicides, including Agent Orange. Service connection for these conditions is therefore granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the throat to obtain additional medical opinions regarding the relationship between the Veteran's condition and his service-connected GERD, as well as any toxic exposures during service at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate reasoning and lack of substantial compliance with a previous Joint Motion for Remand (JMR). The Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the throat is being reviewed again by an oncologist or otolaryngologist to determine if it is related to his military service, including exposure to herbicide agents.
- Partly granted
The Board has granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the throat as due to herbicide exposure. The claims for secondary service connection for various disabilities are remanded.
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