The Board has reopened the appellant's claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to new evidence showing exposure to herbicide agents during military service in Vietnam. The claim is granted.
The deciding factor: New evidence, including a statement from the coroner and a letter from Dr. Mitchell, established that the Veteran may have developed acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) as a result of exposure to Agent Orange during his military service in Vietnam. This new evidence raised a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.
- Claimed conditions
- ALL (Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia), Cardio-respiratory arrest
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 13, 2012
- Citation
- 1213569
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 1213569.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the cause of death and potential service connection for a psychiatric disorder. The Veteran died from cardio-respiratory arrest and sepsis, with underlying conditions including pneumonia and disseminated intravascular coagulation.
- Denied
The Board found that the cause of death, Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL), was not related to service or ionizing radiation exposure. The claim for service connection for the cause of death is denied.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was attributed to cardio-respiratory arrest (CRA) and acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). The VA examiner concluded that the cause of death, CRA, was not related to service or Agent Orange exposure. The appellant's claim for service connection based on presumed Agent Orange exposure is denied.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was listed as cardio-respiratory arrest due to senescence. The VA examiner determined that the service-connected right shoulder disability did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
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