The Veteran's death was caused by metastatic rectal cancer, which is not service-connected. The Board finds that the service-connected conditions did not contribute substantially or materially to cause his death.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not support a finding that any service-connected condition contributed to the Veteran’s death.
- Claimed conditions
- Stage IV rectal cancer, Peripheral artery disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19103509
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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The appeal for service connection for PTSD was dismissed, and the claims for a compensable rating for the lower back scar, service connection for COPD, and peripheral artery disease were denied.
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- Partly granted
The Veteran's service connection for peripheral artery disease was granted, and a 10 percent disability rating from January 1, 2014, to August 29, 2016, for bladder cancer residuals based on urinary obstruction was also granted.
- Partly granted
The Board granted compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for the Veteran's blindness, finding that it was a reasonably foreseeable complication of his VA heart surgery. The claim for service connection for peripheral artery disease was remanded due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
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