The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's death was related to his service-connected condition and Agent Orange exposure. A VA medical opinion is needed to determine if there is at least a 50% probability that the cause of death is linked to these factors.
The deciding factor: The Board cannot make a fully informed decision without a VA medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's esophageal cancer, which may be related to Agent Orange exposure, contributed to his death from advanced gastric cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- advanced gastric cancer at the gastroesophageal junction leading to multiorgan failure
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19141127
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,350 · 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 19141127.
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
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