The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for esophageal and adrenal gland cancer, including as secondary to esophageal cancer, due to a lack of evidence regarding his exposure to asbestos, Agent Orange, or paints and solvents. The RO is instructed to request the USS Hanson’s itinerary and deck logs from September 1967 to December 1968, verify the Veteran's alleged exposures, and schedule him for a VA examination.
The deciding factor: The Board found insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to asbestos, Agent Orange, or paints and solvents during service, which is necessary to determine his claims.
- Claimed conditions
- esophageal cancer, adrenal gland cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19104613
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for the Veteran's cause of death to correct predecisional duty to assist errors, including obtaining additional records and a medical nexus opinion.
- Granted
The Veteran's esophageal cancer is granted service connection due to herbicide exposure during his service in the Republic of Vietnam.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for gastrointestinal cancer other than esophageal cancer and stomach cancer, brain cancer, and prostate cancer. The issues of entitlement to service connection for esophageal cancer, metastatic esophageal cancer, lung cancer, stomach cancer, and liver cancer were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a new medical opinion to address the etiology of the Veteran's esophageal cancer, considering his in-service herbicide agent exposure and service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder.
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