The Board finds that the Veteran's prostate cancer, which caused his death, was incurred in service due to herbicide agent exposure on the USS Fletcher while it patrolled up the Mekong River. As a result, the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the USS Fletcher went up the Mekong River during the Veteran's service, which would qualify him for presumptive service connection based on herbicide agent exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Prostate cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2018
- Citation
- 18142710
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 18142710.
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 Board restored the Veteran's 100 percent disability rating for his service-connected prostate cancer, effective September 1, 2024.
- Partly granted
The Board denied a higher disability rating for PTSD and granted service connection for lumbosacral strain, while denying service connection for prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction, hypertension, and nuclear sclerosis and dry eye syndrome.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection and higher initial rating were dismissed due to concurrent election of review options.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a retrospective VA medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's Parkinson disease, prostate cancer, or OSA are related to his service.
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