The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his skin cancer residuals did not contribute substantially or materially to his death and were unrelated to his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence indicating that the Veteran’s skin cancer residuals contributed substantially or materially to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Skin cancer, Dementia, Atherosclerotic heart disease, Osteoarthritis, Osteoporosis E. discogenic neck disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2019
- Citation
- 19140237
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 19140237.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for ischemic heart disease and diabetes mellitus type II, both presumed to be related to exposure to herbicides during ACDUTRA at Fort McClellan. The claims for benign prostatic hyperplasia, headaches, and skin cancer were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and entitlement to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 due to duty to assist errors, including the need for a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's causes of death.
- Partly granted
The Veteran is granted an effective date of October 21, 2019, for a disability rating of 30 percent for left knee meniscal tear, ACL tear, and osteoarthritis status post left total knee replacement.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for Non Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy with macular edema secondary to diabetes mellitus and denied the claims for a right shoulder condition, right upper extremity neuropathy, and skin cancer.
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