The Board found that the cause of death (metastatic carcinoma) is not related to service and denied both the claim for service connection for cause of death and eligibility for educational benefits for dependents.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence linking the veteran's metastatic colon cancer to his military service, including presumed exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic carcinoma, colon carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 23, 2007
- Citation
- 0722157
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 0722157.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, including colon carcinoma, kidney metastasis, and bladder cancer, did not result from exposure to herbicide agents or asbestos, and it is not otherwise related to the Veteran's service.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was not caused by or contributed to by any service-connected condition, including presumed exposure to herbicides. The Board found no evidence linking the Veteran's cardiac arrest to his service-connected PTSD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to an inability to make a fully informed decision on the issue of service connection for cause of death, as there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding herbicide exposure. The Veteran's death certificate lists colon carcinoma as the immediate cause of death.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death, which included colon carcinoma, is found to be related to his in-service herbicide exposure (Agent Orange). Service connection for the cause of death is granted.
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