The Board has granted service connection for colorectal cancer and respiratory cancer as secondary to colorectal cancer. The Veteran's colorectal cancer is found to be related to active military service, and his respiratory cancer is proximately due to his colorectal cancer.
The deciding factor: The evidence supports a finding that the Veteran's colorectal cancer is related to active military service, and his respiratory cancer is secondary to his now-service-connected colorectal cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- colorectal cancer, respiratory cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19185242
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,614 · Granted: 35% (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 19185242.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
Your appeal has been dismissed because the Veteran died during the pendency of your appeal. As a result, no decision can be made on your claims.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for colorectal cancer, a disability rating more than 60 percent for nephrosclerosis associated with type II diabetes mellitus, TDIU, and an earlier effective date for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA).
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for tonsillar cancer (claimed as throat and respiratory cancer) due to a lack of evidence showing that his condition began during active service or is related to an in-service injury or disease, including presumed exposure to herbicide agents and contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's colorectal cancer is granted on a direct basis. The Board has also remanded for further examination and opinion regarding his GI disorders, including diverticulitis.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.