The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's current squamous cell skin cancer is related to his service, including treatment for moles and exposure to sunlight during military duties.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner could not provide a definitive opinion without resorting to mere speculation, as there was no mention of a left buttock mole during active duty or proximate to it.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell skin cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19164987
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 19164987.
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 remands the claim for service connection for basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer to obtain a VA opinion and examination, as required by the PACT Act due to the Veteran's participation in a toxic exposure risk activity during service.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for squamous cell skin cancer, chronic fatigue syndrome, tuberculosis, hematuria, hypercholesterolemia, and vitamin deficiency. However, the Board granted service connection for a right knee disorder, left knee disorder, and plantar fasciitis.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's squamous and basal cell skin cancer is being remanded for further examination to determine if it is related to his active service, including herbicide agent exposure. The issue of whether the skin cancer resulted from excessive sun exposure without protection during service will also be addressed.
- Denied
The Board has denied the claims for service connection for various conditions, including hearing loss, vertigo or Meniere’s disease, insomnia, conjunctivitis, cataracts, ulcers, headaches, right-hand and left-hand disabilities, squamous cell skin cancer, cholecystitis (claimed as a gallbladder disability), colitis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, skin disability on the back, PTSD, right knee disability, lower back disability, left knee disability, hypertension, and GERD. The claims are denied as secondary to service-connected disabilities or due to in-service exposure.
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