The Veteran's metastatic melanoma is found to be related to sun exposure during his active service, and the claim for service connection is granted.
The deciding factor: Medical opinions provided by doctors indicate that the Veteran's melanoma is likely caused by prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light during military service in Texas.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic melanoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 23, 2016
- Citation
- 1637431
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 1637431.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for metastatic melanoma, finding that it is related to in-service sun exposure.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was not related to his military service, including any in-service dental work or ionizing radiation exposure. The Board denied the claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding the relationship between the Veteran's atherosclerotic cerebrovascular accident and his in-service exposure to herbicide agents. The examiner is asked to provide an opinion on whether this condition qualifies as ischemic heart disease for purposes of presumptive service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's death was attributed to metastatic melanoma, which the Board finds meets the first requirement of service connection. However, due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, the Board must now obtain medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of both conditions.
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