The Veteran's gastric adenocarcinoma, which caused his death, is not service-connected due to lack of evidence linking it to service or Agent Orange exposure.
The deciding factor: Gastric carcinoma was not included on the list of diseases associated with Agent Orange exposure and there is no medical opinion relating the Veteran’s Gastric carcinoma directly either to service or a result of Agent Orange exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- gastric adenocarcinoma
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19133493
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for gastric adenocarcinoma, finding that the evidence does not support a link between the Veteran's condition and his military service, including herbicide exposure.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for gastric adenocarcinoma, claimed as secondary to Agent Orange exposure, and also found that the Veteran's death was due to a service-connected disability. The claim of entitlement to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is dismissed as moot.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's gastric cancer is not related to his asbestos exposure in service. The claims of bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are remanded for further development.
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