The Board finds that service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is warranted based on the evidence showing that arteriosclerotic heart disease substantially or materially contributed to his death, and applying the doctrine of reasonable doubt.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence, including the most recent competent opinion, indicates relative equipoise as to whether the veteran's arteriosclerotic heart disease substantially or materially contributed to his death. With application of the doctrine of reasonable doubt, service connection is warranted.
- Claimed conditions
- arteriosclerotic heart disease with a history of myocardial infarction, metastatic bladder cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 31, 2008
- Citation
- 0810627
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,419 · Granted: 21% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0810627.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his metastatic bladder cancer was likely incurred in or caused by his active service due to exposure to toxic chemicals, including benzene.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was metastatic bladder cancer, which is a presumptive condition due to herbicide exposure. The effective date for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death has been granted as April 1, 2018.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of death due to metastatic bladder cancer, finding that the evidence is in approximate balance as to whether the Veteran's condition was related to his military service. The appeal is granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for further investigation and adjudication regarding service connection for cause of death due to exposure to hazardous contaminants other than radiation at Kirtland Air Force Base, and for a claim under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 related to negligence in performing an incomplete resection surgery.
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