The Board denied service connection for bladder cancer as it was not incurred in or aggravated by service, nor may it be presumed to have been incurred therein. The claim for a permanent and total disability rating for pension purposes was also denied.
The deciding factor: Bladder cancer was not shown to be related to the appellant's military service, including exposure to Agent Orange, and his disabilities did not permanently preclude him from engaging in all forms of substantially gainful occupation.
- Claimed conditions
- Bladder cancer, Seizures, IV drug abuse, Venous stasis with lymphedema, left and right lower extremities, Residuals of IV drug abuse, left and right lower extremities, Hepatitis C, Dry skin of the right lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 23, 2009
- Citation
- 0906558
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 granted service connection for bladder cancer, diabetes mellitus, type 2, and an acquired psychiatric disability (unspecified depressive disorder), but denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a new VA addendum opinion to determine if the Veteran's liver cancer and hepatitis C are related to his active service, including exposure to agent orange.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for several conditions, including lumbar spine degenerative arthritis and radiculopathy of the sciatic and femoral nerves, with effective dates from March 15, 2013. The Board also granted a TDIU and DEA based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss, hypertension, and hepatitis C as there was no evidence of functional impairment sufficient to warrant a higher rating.
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