The veteran's cause of death, liver metastasis due to colon cancer, is not service-connected as the cancer was not present in service and there is no evidence linking it to exposure to herbicides. The Board finds that service connection cannot be granted on a direct or presumptive basis.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing the veteran had colon cancer during his active duty service or for many years after discharge, nor any link between his death from metastatic liver cancer and his military service, including exposure to herbicides.
- Claimed conditions
- Colon Cancer, Liver Metastasis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 27, 2006
- Citation
- 0639920
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 0639920.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted the petition to reopen a claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability and denied service connection for a respiratory disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, diabetes mellitus, type 2, squamous cell carcinoma, right finger, colon cancer, and hepatitis C.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional evidentiary development, including obtaining missing colonoscopy records and seeking an opinion on whether a more comprehensive examination would have been indicated.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of death, finding that no service-connected disability caused or contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Denied
The veteran's service-connected status post partial colectomy for colon cancer is manifested by no more than mild symptoms, with no evidence of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, change in bowel habits, rectal bleeding, urinary or fecal incontinence, weight loss, or impaired nutrition. The criteria for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent have not been met.
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