The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the cause of the Veteran's death and whether any service-connected conditions contributed to his death. The claims file will be forwarded to a VA physician for review.
The deciding factor: Additional evidence, including terminal treatment records from University of Alabama Birmingham Medical West, is necessary to properly assess the cause of the Veteran's death and determine if any service-connected conditions contributed to it.
- Claimed conditions
- right varicocele with thickening of the epididymis and spermatic cord with left varicocelectomy, left vocal cord squamous cell carcinoma, colonic adenocarcinoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 8, 2015
- Citation
- 1524242
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 1524242.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for colonic adenocarcinoma, including as due to hazardous exposures in service, finding that there was no evidence of herbicide agent exposure and insufficient medical opinion supporting a link between the cancer and service.
- Granted
The Veteran's left vocal cord disability was granted a rating of 60 percent from April 12, 2018 to March 21, 2021.,The Veteran's TDIU claim prior to December 30, 2020 was granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for an increased rating for left vocal cord squamous cell carcinoma and TDIU are remanded due to the need for additional examinations.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and there is no evidence of herbicide exposure. The Board denied DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 and the cause of death claim.
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