The Board found that the veteran's death was caused by a pulmonary embolism resulting from a fall due to his hearing loss, which prevented him from hearing his wife's warning. The cause of the fall and subsequent injuries were not definitively established.
The deciding factor: Service connection for the cause of death could be granted as new evidence showed that the veteran's hearing loss likely contributed to his failure to heed his wife's warning, leading to a fall resulting in fatal injuries.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic hepatoma, fractured ribs and lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 1, 2007
- Citation
- 0716316
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 0716316.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board is remanding the case to determine if there is a presumption of service connection for liver cancer related to Camp Lejeune exposure, as the Veteran served at Camp Lejeune and died from metastatic hepatoma (liver cancer).
- Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by metastatic hepatoma due to hepatitis C, which is linked to his service-connected PTSD. The Board finds that the Veteran's alcohol dependence and drug abuse were a result of his service-connected PTSD.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death due to metastatic hepatoma, finding that it was not incurred in or aggravated by service and did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
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