The Veteran's metastatic squamous cell carcinoma and its residuals, including difficulty swallowing, hoarse voice, dry mouth, and loss of taste, are granted as service connected due to exposure to herbicide agents during her Air Force Reserves service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents during her service in the Air Force Reserves and concluded that it is at least as likely as not that her metastatic squamous cell carcinoma is causally related to this exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic squamous cell carcinoma, difficulty swallowing, hoarse voice, dry mouth, loss of taste
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2019
- Citation
- A19000260
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,421 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19000260.
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: Granted
The Veteran's TDIU and DEA claims were granted effective from May 6, 2020. His SMC claim was denied as his service-connected disabilities did not affect his ability to work.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for loss of salivary gland, dry mouth, and loss of swallowing due to inadequate VA examinations at the Facility where he is incarcerated.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claims for compensable ratings for calculus excision in the right submandibular gland, with dry mouth and loss of teeth, residuals of calculus excision in the right submandibular gland, and neck scar, residual of surgical excision of right submandibular gland, prior to December 6, 2022 and in excess of 10 percent thereafter have been denied.,The Board found that a compensable rating is not warranted for any of the conditions due to lack of evidence showing interference with endocrine functions or residual endocrine dysfunction.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran was awarded service connection for allergic rhinitis based on the PACT Act, but an earlier effective date prior to August 10, 2022, is not warranted.
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