The Board has determined that additional evidentiary development is necessary prior to the adjudication of the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death. The case is REMANDED to obtain information regarding potential exposure to chemicals during military service in Alaska and to determine if the natural cause of death was related to such service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there has been no inquiry as to the Veteran's participation in specific operations conducted in Alaska, which could have exposed him to chemicals. Further, records pertaining to ionizing radiation exposure are unclear or unavailable. The case is therefore remanded for additional development and medical opinion regarding potential chemical exposure and its relation to the cause of death.
- Claimed conditions
- adenocarcinoma of lung, metastatic carcinoma of liver, metastatic prostate carcinoma to bone, prostate carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 5, 2015
- Citation
- 1542771
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 1542771.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for prostate cancer, which is presumed to be related to herbicide exposure during the Veteran's service in Okinawa, Japan.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the claims for service connection for the Veteran's cause of death and entitlement to DIC. The Board needs more medical evidence to decide if the Veteran's cardiac issues are related to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's lung conditions, including lung cancer, are remanded for further evaluation and consideration of in-service toxic exposure.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's adenocarcinoma of lung is remanded due to the need for a VA examination and medical opinion regarding its etiology, as well as the need to obtain private medical records.
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