The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of evidence confirming whether the Veteran served in the territorial waters of Vietnam while stationed aboard the USS Forrestal. The Veteran seeks service connection for prostate cancer, which is presumed related to herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: The Federal Circuit Court ruled that service in the Republic of Vietnam includes service in the territorial waters of Vietnam, extending 12 miles from shore. The RO must verify this information before determining service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- adenocarcinoma of the prostate
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2020
- Citation
- 20000524
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,156 · 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 20000524.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's adenocarcinoma of the prostate is rated at 60 percent effective February 5, 2021. An effective date of August 5, 2020 for a 20 percent rating for diabetes mellitus type II has been granted. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and verruca vulgaris of the right hand are not rated as compensable.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, cardiorespiratory arrest and adult failure to thrive, is not service-connected as there is no evidence linking these conditions to his military service or exposure to herbicide agents. The Board finds that the medical evidence does not support a finding of service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's prostate condition was restored to a 60% rating effective December 16, 2025.,An earlier effective date of August 23, 2012, for the grant of TDIU is granted.,SMC at the housebound rate is granted effective September 4, 2025.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including prostate cancer and urothelial cell carcinoma of the bladder, tinnitus, and urethritis, have prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment. The Board has granted a TDIU based on these conditions.
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