The Veteran's cause of death, sepsis due to a perforated cecum caused by metastatic cancer, is not service-connected as the lung cancer did not have its onset during his military service and was not related to any service-connected conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran served aboard USS Oriskany but no evidence exists that he set foot on land in Vietnam. Lung cancer, which caused death, was not linked to service or service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the left knee, traumatic laxity of the left knee, DDD of the right knee, DDD of the lumbosacral spine, depression, metastatic cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- September 21, 2012
- Citation
- 1232735
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 1232735.
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 for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to September 27, 2017. From September 27, 2017, the rating for depression increased to 70 percent.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals were dismissed due to the death of the appellant. The issues related to service connection for various conditions and disability ratings.
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