The Board has reopened the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to new and material evidence. However, the case is remanded as the VA examiner is needed to determine if the Veteran’s brain tumor was related to his in-service exposure to Agent Orange.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there is insufficient medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's brain tumor, specifically whether it was due to in-service exposure to Agent Orange.
- Claimed conditions
- glioma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19115285
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,104 · Granted: 28% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19115285.
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.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's glioma, which caused his death, was not incurred during active duty service and is not related to exposure to herbicide agents. As a result, the claim for service connection for cause of death is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that the Veteran's headaches, including those related to his service-connected low back disability, need further examination and opinion before a final decision can be made.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's brain tumor (glioma), which caused his death, was related to his exposure to ionizing radiation during service. As a result, the appeal for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
- Denied
The Board denied the appellant's claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death in March 1998. The Court affirmed this decision in September 1999. The appellant attempted to reopen her previously denied claim twice, but new and material evidence was not submitted. As no new evidence has been submitted since the last final denial, the petition to reopen is denied.
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