The Veteran's claims for service connection for hepatitis C and hepatocellular carcinoma (claimed as liver cancer) have been reopened. The Board has determined that new evidence supports reopening the claims.,The Veteran is to be scheduled for a VA examination to determine the etiology of any hepatitis infection, and if service connection for hepatitis is established, whether his hepatocellular carcinoma was caused or aggravated by the hepatitis.
The deciding factor: New evidence has been submitted that raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claims for service connection for hepatitis C and hepatocellular carcinoma (claimed as liver cancer).,The Veteran's service treatment records indicate he was diagnosed with several sexually transmitted diseases, including hepatitis. The Board finds it necessary to obtain his complete service treatment records and schedule him for an examination to determine the etiology of any hepatitis infection.
- Claimed conditions
- hepatitis C, hepatocellular carcinoma (claimed as liver cancer)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19141905
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,036 · Granted: 27% (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 19141905.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim for major depression to encompass any mental health disability raised by the record and has remanded six issues for additional development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for COPD, PTSD, hepatitis C, TDIU, and temporary total disability evaluation due to a failure to address his timely request for higher-level review of the July 2018 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for diabetes, gum disease, hypertension, orthopedic foot disorder, left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, hepatitis C, skin disorder of the feet (claimed as trench foot), and an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression and anxiety) due to errors in duty to assist.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for hepatitis C and its secondary effects on other conditions, including cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes mellitus type II, esophageal varices, hepatic encephalopathy, and splenomegaly.
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