The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for cause of death due to parotid cancer and disability resulting from asbestos exposure, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service or contributing to his death.
The deciding factor: The Board found that neither the parotid cancer nor any disability related to asbestos exposure were linked to the Veteran's military service and therefore did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- status-post left total knee arthroplasty, dry eye syndrome, dislocation fracture of the left ring finger with degenerative joint disease, tinnitus, residuals of laceration to left hand, lipomas, bilateral hearing loss, surgical scar of the left knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19194214
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,421 · Granted: 29% (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 19194214.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
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