The Veteran's death in 1975 was not related to a service-connected disability or any other way. The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of service connection for the cause of death.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not establish a link between the Veteran’s mesothelioma and his military service, nor could it be linked to exposure to herbicide agents or asbestos.
- Claimed conditions
- Malignant mesothelioma, Pulmonary embolus
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 31, 2019
- Citation
- 19107232
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,035 · Granted: 30% (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 19107232.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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 death was due to service-connected malignant mesothelioma, and the appellant is entitled to an effective date of June 1, 2015 for DIC benefits.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for DVT of the right lower extremity and pulmonary embolus as secondary to service-connected right knee arthroplasty, finding that these conditions are aggravated by the surgery.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that the effective date for DIC benefits should be changed from July 1, 2016 to July 19, 1992, the date of the Veteran's death. However, VA needs to obtain SSA records related to the appellant's claim for widow benefits based on her husband's death.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by a service-connected condition, multiple myeloma, which developed after his military service in Korea. The Board found that the fatal pulmonary embolus may have been a complication of the Veteran's underlying multiple myeloma.
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