The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, as there was no evidence that a disability incurred in or aggravated by military service caused or contributed to his death.
The deciding factor: The November 2004 VA medical opinion stated that the veteran's fluctuating blood glucose was likely caused by his cancer, not his diabetes mellitus, and that his service-connected diabetes did not likely cause or play a significant role in the veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic carcinoma of unknown primary
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- May 9, 2008
- Citation
- 0815351
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,293 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0815351.
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 Veteran's cause of death, metastatic carcinoma of unknown primary, is found to be related to his presumed exposure to herbicide agents during service in Vietnam. The Board grants service connection for the cause of death.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death, finding that his metastatic carcinoma was not related to his military service and that his anemia associated with hemorrhoids did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's cause of death was due to metastatic carcinoma, which developed more than one year after his discharge from service and is not etiologically related to service or herbicide exposure.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus contributed to his death, and thus grants service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.
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