The Veteran's death was attributed to MDS, which the appellant claims is due to radiation exposure during service. The Board has determined that additional development is needed, including obtaining the Veteran's service personnel records and a dose estimate for any alleged radiation exposure.
The deciding factor: The claim requires further evidence regarding the extent of any radiation exposure and whether it caused MDS.
- Claimed conditions
- Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- Ionizing radiation
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2019
- Citation
- 19139062
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,820 · Granted: 26% (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 19139062.
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 denied the veteran's claims for an initial compensable rating for hypertension and a higher disability evaluation for MDS, as well as remanded service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for Myelodysplastic Syndrome, Prostate Cancer, Thyroid Cancer, and Parkinson's Disease based on new and relevant evidence of exposure to toxic chemicals during active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to obtain a TERA analysis and potentially an opinion regarding the Veteran's AML or MDS as it may be related to toxic exposure during service.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, which was due to myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
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