The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for his salivary gland adenocarcinoma, left kidney hydronephrosis, ureteral stenosis, and lymph node adenocarcinoma as secondary to herbicide agent exposure due to a lack of VA examination and etiology opinions.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's disabilities are not listed in 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e) as diseases entitled to presumptive service connection, but still warrant evaluation for direct service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- salivary gland adenocarcinoma, left kidney hydronephrosis, ureteral stenosis, lymph node adenocarcinoma
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19183323
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,726 · Granted: 19% (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 19183323.
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 Veteran's kidney condition and PTSD are being remanded due to the need for new VA examinations to assess their current severity.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for left kidney hydronephrosis and ureteral stenosis, finding that the conditions were not incurred in or related to service, including exposure to herbicide agents.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for chronic kidney disease, but denied service connection for microscopic hematuria and left kidney hydronephrosis.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
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