The Veteran's bladder cancer with bone and brain metastasis, presumed to be related to herbicide exposure in service, is not service connected. The cause of death due to metastatic carcinoma of the bladder is also not service connected.
The deciding factor: There was no direct evidence linking the Veteran’s bladder cancer or squamous cell carcinoma of the spine to his military service, including herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Bladder Cancer, Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Spine
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 8, 2009
- Citation
- 0921338
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 0921338.
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 Veteran's hypertension was granted a 10 percent rating for the period prior to August 10, 2022. The Veteran's bladder cancer received a 100 percent rating from March 7, 2018 until September 8, 2018.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bladder cancer effective from December 16, 2005, finding that the Veteran had a claim pending since then.
- Granted
The Veteran's psychiatric disability, hypertension, and bladder cancer are granted service connection. The Board has remanded the cases for further development regarding herbicide exposure claims.
- Denied
The Veteran's bladder cancer residuals were denied as service connection was not established due to lack of in-service exposure to herbicides or asbestos, and the current disability is not related to his service.
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