The Board found that the preponderance of the evidence is against the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to malignant melanoma, as there was no evidence linking the condition to in-service sun exposure or any other aspect of military service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not establish a link between the Veteran's malignant melanoma and his time in service. The private physician acknowledged that any such link required speculation, while the VA examiner opined that it would be speculative to state that the in-service sun exposure was the cause of the malignant melanoma.
- Claimed conditions
- Malignant melanoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 20, 2009
- Citation
- 0906278
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss and remanded claims for service connection for malignant melanoma, lung cancer, kidney disability, hypertension, and TDIU.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's cause of death, malignant melanoma, was related to his presumed exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient consideration of the appellant's contention that the cause of the Veteran’s death, malignant melanoma, was related to sun exposure during service.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, partial blindness, and malignant melanoma due to a lack of evidence supporting these conditions.
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