The Board remanded the case for additional development of medical records regarding the Veteran's bladder cancer treatment at Miami VAMC in 1997, which the Veteran attributes to his current cardiovascular disability. The Regional Office must obtain complete treatment records and then readjudicate the claim under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 standards.
The deciding factor: The Board found that VA medical records regarding the Veteran's bladder cancer treatment are essential and in constructive possession of the VA but have not been obtained, making them necessary to determine whether VA's hospital care or surgical treatment proximately caused the cardiovascular disability under § 1151.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiovascular disability, bladder cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 3, 2009
- Citation
- 0907682
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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, finding it to be related to the Veteran's in-service herbicide exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of December 12, 2023, for a 50 percent evaluation of bipolar disorder and remanded the other issues for further development.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, bladder cancer, due to in-service exposure to ionizing radiation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of bladder cancer to obtain an adequate VA TERA opinion and provide a clarifying opinion on the relationship between exposure to fuel or CARC and bladder cancer.
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