The Veteran's claim for service connection for colon cancer, remission post-surgical, as due to an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisystem illnesses as a result of exposure to environmental hazards in Southwest Asia is denied.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for cognitive disorder (claimed as memory loss), as due to an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisystem illnesses as a result of exposure to environmental hazards in Southwest Asia, and/or as secondary to service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's colon cancer was caused by an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisystem illness due to exposure to environmental hazards in Southwest Asia, and it is unrelated to his active service.,There is no evidence of memory loss or cognitive disorder during service or post-service. The VA examiner found no current diagnosis of a cognitive disorder and opined that any such disability would not be related to the Veteran's PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- colon cancer, cognitive disorder (claimed as memory loss)
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19161813
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 19161813.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of colon cancer, claimed as due to exposure to asbestos, for an addendum opinion considering additional evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for colon cancer as the evidence did not support a link between the Veteran's current condition and their in-service toxic exposure risk activity.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the service connection claim for colon cancer to obtain a medical opinion on its etiology, particularly regarding exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death during the pendency of the claims.
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