The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding no evidence linking acute leukemia to his military service or herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: There is no competent medical evidence establishing a relationship between the Veteran's acute myeloid leukemia and his presumed Agent Orange exposure during active military service in Vietnam.
- Claimed conditions
- acute leukemia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 23, 2009
- Citation
- 0906521
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,440 · Granted: 30% (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 0906521.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to his service-connected disabilities, specifically myelodysplastic syndrome and acute leukemia. The decision is based on the presumption that these conditions are related to herbicide exposure during the Veteran's service in Thailand.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for the cause of death and DIC benefits due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents or jet fuel during his military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was respiratory failure due to or as a consequence of intracerebral hemorrhage and acute leukemia. The Board found no service-connected disabilities at the time of his death, and there is no evidence of herbicide agent exposure. Service connection for the Veteran's cause of death is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and the need for a medical opinion regarding the cause of death.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.