The Board found that the Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of his death.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show that any service-connected condition caused or contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- Gastrointestinal bleeding, Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2014
- Citation
- 1411730
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1411730.
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: Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between the Veteran's military service and his death from gastrointestinal bleeding and hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) due to the evidence being at least in approximate balance as to whether the Veteran's MDS is etiologically related to his active service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, finding no evidence linking his respiratory failure, pneumonia, malignant neoplasm of the esophagus, gastrointestinal bleeding, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to his military service, including exposure to herbicides and Camp Lejeune contaminated water.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient clarification on whether the Veteran's AML was linked to his service, specifically his exposure to herbicides while in Vietnam. The Appellant is seeking direct service connection for AML.
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