The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death, cardiorespiratory arrest, was not caused by or substantially contributed to by his service-connected prostate and/or bladder cancer. The Board determined that there is no credible evidence linking the Veteran's cancers to Agent Orange exposure.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions concluded that the Veteran's brain metastasis was most likely due to his bladder cancer, which was not proximately caused by in-service herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiorespiratory arrest, metastatic cancer of the brain, metastatic cancer of the bladder
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 28, 2009
- Citation
- 0948659
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 0948659.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's death was caused by cardiorespiratory arrest and metastatic esophageal cancer. The appellant is recognized as the surviving spouse, but service connection for cause of death remains pending due to insufficient information on in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there was no evidence linking the Veteran's cardiorespiratory arrest to his military service or a service-connected disability.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and the Board found insufficient evidence to establish a connection between his conditions and his military service.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of sufficient VA medical opinion regarding the Veteran's cause of death and whether his coronary artery disease caused or contributed to his death.
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