The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his malignant melanoma is related to his presumed exposure to Agent Orange during service. The claim was reopened due to new evidence received since the last denial.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence supports a link between the Veteran's exposure to Agent Orange and his development of malignant melanoma, which contributed to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- malignant melanoma
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 1, 2017
- Citation
- 1730517
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 1730517.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for malignant melanoma, finding that there was no evidence linking the condition to his active duty service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for her scars has been withdrawn, resulting in the dismissal of this claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA did not obtain all necessary service treatment records and failed to provide a VA medical opinion addressing the cause of death. The claim is being remanded for these actions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for malignant melanoma and lung cancer due to a failure to fully develop the record regarding toxic risk exposure activities. The Veteran's service records indicate he was exposed to herbicides during his military service, but further development is needed to include non-herbicide exposures.
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