The Board found that the Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected condition, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of his death.
The deciding factor: There is no definitive evidence linking the Veteran's service-connected anxiety reaction to his Alzheimer's dementia or any other conditions resulting in his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Anxiety Reaction, Squamous Cell Carcinoma Head (Face), Alzheimer's Dementia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 2, 2009
- Citation
- 0941661
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0941661.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's Alzheimer's Dementia is found to be directly related to his in-service exposure to herbicide agents, specifically Agent Orange. The Board has granted service connection for the condition on a direct basis.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for PTSD is dismissed as a free-standing claim.,The appeal seeking to revise or reverse the November 4, 2009 rating decision that denied service connection for depression and anxiety reaction is remanded.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's cause of death is being remanded for a VA medical opinion to determine the nature and likely cause of his death, specifically whether his service-connected PTSD was a principal or contributory cause of death. The claim will be readjudicated after this development.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for PTSD, generalized anxiety disorder, and anxiety reaction based on the evidence of record at that time. The decision was not overturned due to clear and unmistakable error (CUE).
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