The Veteran died from kidney cancer, which is not service-connected. The Board found that the Veteran did not have exposure to herbicides during service and thus could not establish a presumption of service connection for his other conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's cause of death was not related to service due to lack of evidence of in-service exposure to herbicides, as well as no showing of continuity of symptoms or compensable degree within one year of service separation.
- Claimed conditions
- kidney cancer, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cardiomyopathy, severe mitral regurgitation, pulmonary artery disease, Parkinson's disease
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 13, 2016
- Citation
- 1627901
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 1627901.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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