The Veteran's cause of death, Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), is found to be service-connected as a direct result of exposure to herbicide agents in service. The Board finds the evidence in equipoise regarding the nexus between AML and herbicide agent exposure.
The deciding factor: The positive opinion from Dr. J.K., an oncologist, outweighs the negative opinion from the VA examiner due to the contradiction in their findings.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19193373
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,092 · Granted: 42% (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 19193373.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) is granted due to exposure to herbicide agents during his service in Vietnam.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was caused by Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), which was service-connected. However, the effective date for DIC benefits is denied as it was received over a year after the Veteran's death.
- Granted
The Veteran's AML is granted service connection effective January 10, 2025. His prior claims for service connection are denied and his dermatitis claim remains at a non-compensable rating.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular aid and attendance was denied because he is not in need of such assistance due to his service-connected disabilities. The Board found that while the Veteran requires some help with daily activities, he does not meet the criteria for needing regular aid and attendance.
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