The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence is against the appellant's claims for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and DIC under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, as there is no medical evidence linking any causes of the veteran's death to an incident or finding during active service.
The deciding factor: There was no record of treatment for liver cancer or hepatitis C infection in the veteran's service medical records and post-service medical records show only that he was treated for PTSD and polysubstance abuse, with a recent diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma just before his death.
- Claimed conditions
- hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatitis C infection
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 26, 2008
- Citation
- 0806403
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 0806403.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for hepatocellular carcinoma, which is secondary to hepatitis C, has been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's requests for earlier effective dates for service connection of kidney cancer and liver cancer, finding that no formal or informal claims were filed prior to February 12, 2025.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to reconsider the claim for DIC. The AOJ will now review the case in light of all available evidence.
- Granted
The Board has granted the claim of service connection for hepatocellular carcinoma, finding that it was aggravated by the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus type II.
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