The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and for nasopharyngeal cancer, finding no evidence that these conditions were related to his military service.
The deciding factor: There was no medical evidence linking the Veteran's closed head injury or nasopharyngeal cancer to any incident during his active service, including exposure to Agent Orange.
- Claimed conditions
- closed head injury due to probable intracranial hemorrhages, nasopharyngeal cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2009
- Citation
- 0910101
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a VA medical opinion to determine the likely etiology of the Veteran's nasopharyngeal cancer, including whether it is related to his service or exposure to herbicide agents.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for nasopharyngeal cancer, finding that the Veteran's condition is related to his in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for nasopharyngeal cancer, finding that the evidence is at least evenly balanced as to whether it is related to military service, specifically herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, right and left lower extremity diabetic neuropathy, degenerative disc disease with osteoporosis ('back disability'), and remanded the claim of service connection for nasopharyngeal cancer as due to exposure toxins for the period prior to August 10, 2022.
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