The Board found that the veteran's fatal thyroid cancer was not caused or substantially contributed to by his military service, including exposure to herbicides in Vietnam. The cause of death is presumed to be unrelated to his service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not support a finding that the veteran's metastatic thyroid cancer was related to his service-connected rheumatoid arthritis or any other service-related factor.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic thyroid cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2007
- Citation
- 0700540
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0700540.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the appeal for severance of DIC benefits and discontinuance of DEA benefits, finding that there was not clear and unmistakable error in the original grant of these benefits.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a new medical opinion to address the Veteran's metastatic thyroid cancer and its potential link to Agent Orange exposure during his service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's daughter is seeking to extend her DEA benefits due to cancer, but the Board denied this claim as her 31st birthday has passed and VA cannot grant an extension on an equitable basis.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's lung cancer is not service-connected, as it was determined to be metastatic thyroid cancer and not a primary respiratory tract cancer. The medical evidence did not support a link between the Veteran's current lung nodules and his time in service.
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