The Board denied service connection for the Veteran's cancers (tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma) as they are not shown to be related to his military service or any service-connected disability. The cause of death is also denied.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not establish a link between the Veteran's cancer diagnoses and his military service, including exposure to tactical herbicide agents.
- Claimed conditions
- tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 21, 2017
- Citation
- 1759712
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 1759712.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, finding it is at least as likely as not related to the Veteran's exposure to Agent Orange during his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma, finding that it was caused by exposure to contaminated water at Camp LeJeune during his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma and dysphagia as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma.,Service connection was established based on direct evidence, with no presumption of exposure or disease association.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma and dysphagia due to service connection issues, specifically regarding herbicide exposure. The case will be reviewed again with a new medical opinion.
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