The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, which is related to his in-service asbestos exposure. As a result, the cause of the Veteran’s death is considered service-connected.
The deciding factor: The evidence is in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's asbestosis contributed to his death from lung cancer, and reasonable doubt has been resolved in favor of the appellant.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic sarcoma, squamous cell carcinoma of the lung
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 17, 2018
- Citation
- 18127312
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 18127312.
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 Veteran's cause of death, metastatic sarcoma and spindle cell tumor with prostate cancer as a contributing factor, is related to his exposure as a firefighter during active military service. The Board has granted entitlement to service connection for the cause of death.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, acknowledging that the evidence was at least in equipoise regarding the relationship between the veteran's exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune and his current condition.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of death, finding no evidence that the Veteran's metastatic sarcoma was related to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error, specifically regarding an inadequate medical opinion on the etiology of the Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the lung. The AOJ is required to obtain an addendum medical opinion addressing whether the Veteran's lung cancer is at least as likely as not caused by his exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
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