The Board denied claims for service connection for bilateral cataracts and esophageal cancer as they are not related to service. However, the Veteran's surviving spouse is entitled to accrued benefits based on his prior claim.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not establish a link between the Veteran's conditions and his military service or any service-connected disability.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral cataracts, esophageal cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- May 4, 2016
- Citation
- 1617968
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 1617968.
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.
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- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of death due to esophageal cancer, which is presumed to be related to exposure to herbicide agents during service in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's prostate disability. The claims for esophageal cancer and Barrett's esophagus remain denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the AOJ committed pre-decisional duty to notify and duty to assist errors in denying the DIC claim for the cause of the Veteran's death. The claim must be remanded to allow the AOJ to make a finding regarding whether the Appellant is considered the surviving spouse, as this is a threshold requirement for DIC benefits.
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