The Veteran's claims for service connection for lung cancer, ischemic heart disease, and diabetes mellitus type II are remanded due to uncertainty about his exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam. The AOJ must verify if the USS Coral Sea entered inland waterways or territorial sea extending 12 nautical miles from the shores of Vietnam during the Veteran's time on board.
The deciding factor: The Board is uncertain about the Veteran’s exposure to herbicide agents due to conflicting information and needs to verify his claimed service in a combat zone.
- Claimed conditions
- lung cancer, ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus type II
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19143159
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his lung cancer was related to his service-connected melanoma.
- Partly granted
The Board grants service connection for tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's tinnitus began during his period of active duty service. The claims for ischemic heart disease, aortic valve replacement, status post aortic stenosis, and peripheral vascular disease with popliteal aneurysm are remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of December 12, 2023, for a 50 percent evaluation of bipolar disorder and remanded the other issues for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to obtain a new medical opinion regarding the Veteran's ischemic heart disease, as the previous opinions were found inadequate.
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