The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to cholangiocarcinoma, which is at least as likely as not caused by a liver fluke infection during his service in Vietnam. The issue of entitlement to DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 is dismissed as moot.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence was at least in equipoise on whether the Veteran's cholangiocarcinoma was caused by a liver fluke infection during his service, thus granting service connection for the cause of death.
- Claimed conditions
- Cholangiocarcinoma
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2015
- Citation
- 1502875
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 1502875.
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.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for liver cancer, finding that there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between his in-service exposures and his diagnosed liver cancer. The medical opinion provided by VA concluded that the liver cancer was not caused by or aggravated by any of the conditions listed.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that the evidence did not support a causal link between the Veteran's cholangiocarcinoma and his military service.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his cholangiocarcinoma was at least as likely as not related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus and/or in-service herbicide agent exposure.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his cholangiocarcinoma was related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents and/or parasitic infection.
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