The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was related to his military service, including exposure to Agent Orange. The cause of death is an acute cerebrovascular attack (CVA) due to vertebral artery thrombosis.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found it at least as likely as not that the Veteran's neck cancer contributed substantially or materially to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma of the right neck
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2012
- Citation
- 1242422
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 1242422.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 determined that the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents during his service in Vietnam. The claims for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the right neck and ischemic heart disease are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the right neck as a result of exposure to Agent Orange, finding that the Veteran was not exposed to herbicide agents during his service and that squamous cell carcinoma is not among the diseases covered by the presumption.,Service connection for ischemic heart disease was also denied due to lack of evidence linking it to service.
- Denied
The Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the right neck was not manifested during service or within one year of separation and is not attributable to an in-service disease or injury, including herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the right neck and reactive lymphadenitis, both claimed as due to herbicide exposure. The evidence did not establish a nexus between these conditions and his military service.
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