The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents and radiation during service, as well as his cause of death. Additional development is needed to determine these issues.
The deciding factor: Insufficient evidence was provided to establish the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents or radiation in Thailand and Japan, which are necessary for service connection claims based on such exposures.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertensive cardiovascular disease, fluid balance abnormalities, metastatic adenocarcinoma of unknown etiology
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 10, 2018
- Citation
- 18133197
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 18133197.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension is related to herbicide exposure during service and contributed substantially to his cause of death.,Service connection for both hypertension and the cause of death (hypertensive cardiovascular disease) is granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and entitlement to VA DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to a need for further evaluation regarding the relationship between any identified pulmonary/respiratory disability, including bronchial asthma, and active service.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for the cause of death and remanded the issue of a compensable disability rating for bilateral defective hearing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that the cause of the Veteran's death is related to his service-connected disabilities, but further medical opinion is needed to determine if these conditions contributed substantially or materially to his death.
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