The Board has determined that the Veteran's cause of death, metastatic cholangiocarcinoma, was caused by or related to herbicide agent exposure during service in Vietnam. Therefore, the claim for service connection for cause of death is granted.
The deciding factor: The medical opinion provided a nexus between the Veteran’s herbicide agent exposure and his development of metastatic cholangiocarcinoma, which was considered the principal cause of death.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic cholangiocarcinoma
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 1, 2018
- Citation
- 18107070
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 18107070.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA did not fully develop the claim for all of the Veteran's possible participation in TERA, including unrecorded trips to countries neighboring Vietnam and service with Republic of Korea forces by Navy personnel involved in the Poseidon program. The case is being remanded to obtain this information.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, as metastatic cholangiocarcinoma was not shown to be related to his active service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied payment or reimbursement for non-VA medical care for cancer and hepatic steatosis as a Camp Lejeune family member due to the clinical finding that these conditions did not result from exposure at Camp Lejeune.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's cause of death is linked to his presumed in-service exposure to an herbicide agent such as Agent Orange.
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